Suite Life on Campus, Season 2
by SprouseGoose
Summary: The second season of Suite Life on Campus.  Everyone continues moving on with their lives as they face situations that will have lasting impacts on their futures.
1. She's Back

_Episode 1_

__I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did.__

__Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them.__

__Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves.__

__And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so...__

__Boston__

Zack slumped against the door frame in complete and utter shock seeing his ex-girlfriend standing there. He knew that Maya had said she was going to come see him soon, but seeing her standing there when he opened the door was the last thing he could ever have imagined happening. More than that though, actually seeing her standing there practically left him speechless and caused his mind to go blank. After about a minute, he was finally able to mutter a single word.

"Maya?"

She gave him a small smile. "Hey, Zack...Surprise."

He just continued looking at her. "You can definitely say that again. But...how...what...I..." He shook his head to gather his thoughts. "What...what are you doing here?"

Maya just looked at him. "You got my letters at Christmas and after the Super Bowl, right? I told you in them that was going to come and see you as soon as I could. Well...here I am."

Zack tried to clear his head and make sense of this. "But...but you're supposed to still be in Africa. I thought you were going to be there for another year?"

"I was, but I cut my time there short." She paused. "Would it be okay if I came inside so we could talk?"

Zack was just speechless again, but he opened the door for her. And when Maya walked inside the suite, Cody and Bailey finally saw who it was for the first time. Both just turned and looked at each other in surprise. Maya had the same small smile on her face when she saw them.

"Hey guys. I...ummm...Congrats on finishing your first year at Yale. And Cody, a belated congrats on finally getting accepted in to there."

Cody paused. "Yeah. Thank you." He swallowed and turned to Bailey. "I think we should...ummm..."

She nodded. "Yeah...we should...ummm..." She racked her brain trying to think of something...of anything to give them a reason to get out of there. And then, she blurted out the first thing to came to her mind. "...go get some trash bags and start cleaning up the new suite!"

Cody silently thanked her to himself. "Yeah. No time like the present to get started on that. We'll let you two have some privacy to...talk."

And just like that, both jumped up off the couch and out the door. Once they were gone, Maya turned to Zack.

"I guess I shouldn't be too surprised about my welcome here, huh? I mean...especially after everything that happened..."

Zack was using the kitchen table to prop himself up. "I still can't believe you're here..."

Maya sighed. "Like I told you in my letter, I had to come see you and talk to you. To apologize again for what I did. I know there isn't a good enough reason for what I did, but I wanted to try to explain to you what I was thinking."

Zack was very unsure, but he made his way over to the couch and sat down. "Alright. You came all this way. I'll let you say what you want to say."

She nodded and sat down next to him. "Zack, I never meant to hurt you like I did. I had no idea you would react the way that you did..."

He interrupted her. "You didn't?"

"No, I didn't. I know we were exclusive with each other, but I didn't realize just how serious you saw things until I saw the look in your eyes that day. In that instant, I wanted to take back what I had just said, but I knew I couldn't..."

"You really hurt me when you wouldn't even consider a long distance relationship. I thought we had something special, but I guess I was the only one who felt that way."

Maya shook her head. "You weren't! Like I said in my letter, I got scared. Zack, we both know what your past history was, and..."

He interrupted her again, and this time he was a little angry. "I thought we had dealt with that and moved on from it!"

She sighed. "Consciously, I had. But it kept gnawing at my subconscious. I tried to fight it, but when I heard how you flirted with Woody's sister when she first arrived on the boat and then how much time you spent with one of those twins at the Gemini Project, it got even worse..."

He just looked at her and paused. "Okay, maybe some old habits die hard, but I never did anything with either of them! Willa had her eyes on Cody while those twins there had literally lost their minds..."

"I know that. But that little voice in the back of my head kept asking me if you would do stuff like that while I was still around, what would you do when I was half a word away for two years?"

Zack glared at her. "So...you're saying instead of talking to me about it, you just made a decision to cut me loose?"

She nodded. "Yeah, I did. And I have regretted doing that ever since I did it..."

Zack paused and stood up. "Alright. You've said what you wanted to say. I think..."

This time, Maya interrupted him. "Not all of what I came here to say! Zack, I want another chance with you! Another chance for us!"

__Suite 2316 (Zack and Cody's New Suite)__

Cody and Bailey were both picking up trash, but it was obvious that both had what was happening down the hall on their minds. Bailey finally sighed and turned to Cody.

"Did we do the right thing by getting out of there?"

Cody paused. "Bails, to be honest, I don't know. On the one hand, what's going on in there is between the two of them and none of our business. On the other hand, I have the urge to be there to make sure she doesn't hurt him again."

"Maybe she has no intentions of doing that? Maybe she is serious in wanting him back?"

"Maybe. But Zack's come so far in the past year in getting over her. I don't want to see him relapse."

"Neither do I. He's finally got direction in his life. I just want our couch to be there for us to sit on when we're older..."

Cody smiled at her. "But, I do have to say. I'm glad for once the drama happening doesn't involve us."

Bailey just looked at him and shook her head. "Good one, Cody. You probably just jinxed us!"

He kept smiling. "Even if I did, I'm not too concerned. We've proven that nothing can come between us for long...even ourselves."

"True, but just to make sure, why don't you knock on some wood?"

Cody nodded and knocked on the broken table in the middle of the room. And when he did, he accidentally knocked a hole right through it.

Bailey sighed and laughed. "Add a new table to the list of things we'll need."

But Cody was grinning. "You have your phone on you? Take a picture of this. I want proof to show people that it was actually me who knocked a hole in it!"

__Back Down the Hall__

Zack just looked at Maya and shook his head.

"I just don't know, Maya. If this had been a year ago, I would have been all about doing what ever it took to keep us together. But its not. A year has passed, and a lot has changed since then."

"How I feel about you hasn't. In fact, its only grown stronger."

He nodded. "I believe that's what you believe. But the fact is you don't know me anymore. In the past year, I've changed a lot. Other than a brief relapse over Halloween at Yale, I think I've really matured over the past year. Right now, I have a job and I'm beginning BU later this summer. A year ago, I didn't have a plan for my future. Right now, I do. And I have to keep my eye on the prize."

"And I completely understand that. Zack, I meant it when I said I was so proud of you when I heard you were taking classes. And when I heard you were going to be attending BU, I thought I might burst."

Zack frowned. "Speaking of which, who exactly has been keeping you informed of what's been going on around here?"

Maya shrugged. "To be perfectly honest, I don't know. I just know that every couple of weeks, an envelope arrived with my name on it. And it was all typed out, so there was no way to try to match handwriting styles. But whoever did it, I'm glad they did. It was link back to my old life when I was so far away from home."

"Still..."

"And Zack, I would never ask you to take your eye off your goals now. I want to be the person who is by your side supporting you and helping you achieve them."

He sighed. "But how would that work? I've already told you. My life is here in Boston. Even if you are back permanently from Africa, your home is still New York."

She shook her head. "That doesn't matter. My parents came over to Chad and visited me over the holidays. And I broke down to them that I knew I had made a mistake. They fully supported me if I chose to return to the states and get you back. Zack, I'm prepared to move to Boston and begin a life here. I've already applied to several universities in the area, and I'm just waiting to hear back from them now. My best case scenario is that I get to go to school at BU with you."

Zack slumped back into the couch. "But that still doesn't negate the fact that we are two totally different people now. I know I've changed, and I'm sure what you've done for the past year has changed you as well. Maya, right now, we are essentially two total strangers to each other."

She smiled at him. "Well, then I guess we can just take our time getting to know each other all over again."

"And what if we find out that we don't like the new versions of each other? What then?"

Maya paused. "Then we know we gave it our best shot. We'll know that if it didn't work out, it wouldn't be because we didn't try."

He sighed again. "Maya...still...I just don't know."

She scrounged up all of her courage and asked the question she was dreading. "Does this have to do with that girl Amanda?"

__New Haven__

Gertie had sunk back down into her desk chair as she just continued staring at the picture in her hand. She just shook her head and silently berated herself.

"How did I not put two and two together that Tapeworm was Captain America? I mean...shouldn't I have recognized that his voice was familiar?" She sighed. "And of course, I would discover this right after everyone else had left for the summer..."

She paused and looked at her desk. "Maybe I'm making a mistake here and have this all wrong. I could be making a big deal over nothing. Maybe I should call Bailey. She'll be able to tell me if I'm right or wrong about this..." She reached for her phone and then pulled her hand back.

"No. I can't do that right now. If she tells me that it was him, I don't know how I would handle that. What would I do? What would I say?" She shook her head again. "I need to think about this some more. If I act too rash, I could end up regretting it. Maybe this summer is just what I need so I can figure out what I need to do."

And no sooner had she said that, she began laughing. "Oh, who am I kidding? Captain America was the guy I've been trying to find since Halloween, and now I have." She paused. "But what if he just wants to be my friend? What if that is all he sees me as? I mean...can I even see him as more than a friend?" She began flipping through the pictures again.

"Well, he is kind of cute in his own way. And we do get along great...as long as the Ravens and Pats aren't playing each other. He's fun to hang out with. And I've never had more fun on a Valentine's Day, and all we did was just eat chicken wings and see a classic comedy." She paused again. "Yeah, I think I can definitely see him as more than just a friend..."

She sighed again. "But that does me no good if he can't do the same. So, what should I do?" She looked at the pictures again, and that's when it hit her. "Wait a minute! Didn't Bailey tell me that Cody devised a six month plan to win her over?" She grinned as a plan began to form in her mind. "I hope Cody doesn't mind, but I might just have to borrow his idea..."

__The Martin Suite__

Zack just looked at Maya in sort of surprise.

"I guess whoever has been keeping you updated knows everything."

Maya paused. "That wasn't an answer to my question. Is there something going on between you and this girl?"

Zack shook his head. "She's my friend. Actually, she's become a real good friend of mine. We have an awful lot in common. Both of us have twin siblings who like to set the bar high, and..." He smirked. "...we both had our significant others dump us to pursue an opportunity of a lifetime out of the country. We've bonded over that and helped each other move on with our lives."

Maya winced at that. "I guess I deserved that. But, do you have any feelings for her other than friendship?"

"To be quite honest, after the number you did on me, I've kind of avoided women. I guess I was afraid of putting myself out there again and getting burned." He paused and smirked again. "Oh, I guess I could have gone back to being a player again, but that really had no appeal to me any longer. Maybe it was because my self confidence was a little shattered..."

She exhaled. "Again, I couldn't be any sorrier about what happened than I am right now..."

He laughed. "The funny thing is her ex-boyfriend showed back up into her life last week. I felt sorry for her having to deal with that, and here I am dealing with the same thing."

"Maybe he realized his mistake too and wants her back?"

He shrugged. "Maybe he does? But that's not his call, is it? In fact, she wants some payback against him. She's asked me to pretend to be her boyfriend to get a little revenge. And of course, I agreed..."

Maya paused. "What does that mean exactly?"

"I'm not sure. I just told her to tell me what she needs me to do." Zack thought of something and looked at her. "What about you? You claim that you regret what you did and wanted me back? How do I know you weren't seeing someone over in Africa?"

Maya began laughing. "Oh please! The only guy around my age was a fan of Bob Marley if you catch my drift. Some people might like rastas, but I'm not a big fan of dreadlocks. Besides, I think everyone over there was getting sick of listening to me talk about you."

"That may be true, but all I have is your word on that..."

"Zack, you can trust me on that..."

He looked at her again. "Can I? Because I don't think I can. I trusted you once before and look where it got me..."

That silenced Maya. "Wow. I knew you were hurt, but I'm just now realizing how hurt you were. I guess I was thinking about me and how I thought you felt. But I can see it was much worse than that..."

"Well, it is. You really shook me to the core, Maya. You want to hear the truth?"

She nodded. "Yeah, I do. As painful as it might be, I need to hear it."

"Right before graduation, I was scared too. I had thoughts of breaking up with you two, but I talked with Cody about it before I did anything. Thanks to his help, it dawned on me that I more than just liked you. It dawned on me that I loved you. That night when you dumped me, I was going to tell you that. Talk about having the rug pulled out from underneath you..."

Maya put her hand up to her mouth and gasped. "I had no idea..."

"Would it have made a difference to you that night?"

She paused. "Honestly, I don't know. But I know if you said it to me right now, it would make all the difference in the world to me..."

Zack had a small smile. "I'm not sure I feel that way anymore though..."

__Suite 2316__

Cody and Bailey were finishing tying up the last of the bags of trash to take out to the garbage shoot. And as they were doing that, Carey stopped by the room to take a first look at it.

"From the way you guys were talking, I expected this place to be much worse. But it just looks like some cosmetic damage at most."

Cody sighed. "Oh, it was. These two bags bring the total we've filled to..." He paused to think.

Bailey answered though. "Thirty-eight. And that doesn't include the kitchen table we took apart and threw out by itself."

Carey's eyes went wide. "Thirty-eight? Did they have a party or Woodstock?"

Bailey laughed. "We have no idea, but fortunately, none of the plumbing, wiring or electrical outlets have been damaged. Cody and I were just figuring it up that we could get all the spackling and repairs done tomorrow. And if we're lucky, the first coat of paint. Then a second coat on Thursday morning. And then give it 24 hours to air out and dry. If all goes well, we can begin bringing up appliances, furniture and accessories on Saturday morning."

Cody nodded. "That would give me Sunday morning to move my things in here before starting work at the Tipton Clinic the next day..."

Carey paused. "Sounds like you two have a plan then. But since this was all Zack's idea, shouldn't he be here helping you guys do this?"

Cody looked and Bailey before turning back to his Mom. "Ummm...Zack's kind of busy right now."

"Busy doing what?"

"He's got a visitor..."

"Who?"

Cody hesitated. "Maya..."

Carey's eyes went wide. "Excuse me? I thought you just said Maya."

Bailey spoke up. "He did. She just showed up out of the blue. We got out of there to give them some privacy."

Carey was confused. "But I thought she was still in Africa..."

"So did we. But, I guess we were wrong. She and Zack are down the hall talking right now."

Carey shook her head. "My poor baby boy. He was doing so well and moving on with his life..." She turned back to Cody. "Why didn't you stay there so we'd at least know what they're talking about?"

"No offense, Mom, but there are some moments where people deserve some privacy."

"I suppose." She paused. "How long are we supposed to wait? I look good in this dress, but I was looking forward to just changing into my sweats and relaxing..."

Cody shrugged. "I'm not sure. We were just going to throw away these last two bags and head up to the penthouse. I was just going to crash on the couch up there tonight..."

Carey just looked back and forth between Cody and Bailey. "I may have been born at night, but it wasn't last night. I understand you two love each other, are in a committed relationship and are adults now. But I think we all know that Cody won't be crashing on the couch, now don't we?"

__The Martin Suite__

Maya just looked at Zack in earnest. "But you might still feel that way though, right?"

He sighed. "Maybe. I don't know. You just can't turn off feelings like a water faucet. But they can fade over time..."

"But they aren't completely gone yet. So, there is a chance to reignite them. And Zack, that's all I'm asking for right now is that chance. I know you and I can be great together. I'm all in, and that's what I want. The question that needs to be answered is will you give us a second chance?"

Zack shrugged. "Maya, I just don't know. What's the old expression? Once bitten, twice shy? I'm scared right now. I'm scared of opening myself up to you again and being hurt again."

"That won't happen!"

"Actions speak louder than words..."

She paused. "You're right. They do. And I'm going to show you with my actions that I won't ever hurt you again. One way or another, I'm moving up here to Boston. And one way or another, I'm going to integrate myself into your daily life again. I'm going to make it so that you can't live without me again..."

"Maya..."

"I mean it. Cody and Bailey are proof that if two people love each other enough that they can overcome anything and everything. I think that can be us too."

Zack paused. "Maybe. Maybe not. We aren't them."

Maya looked him directly in eyes. "My vote is for maybe. And I know when we first met, it was me who was skeptical, and you had to convince me that you were worth it. Well, now the roles are reversed. This time, its you who is skeptical, and its my turn to convince you that I'm worth the risk. And Zack, I am going to convince you of that! And when I do, it will make it all that much sweeter. Fight me all you want, but I am going to get you back!"

__To be Continued...__


	2. Land of Confusion

_Episode 2_

__"Land of Confusion"__

__I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did.__

__Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them.__

__Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves.__

__And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so...__

__Boston__

Later on that night, Cody stopped back down by the suite on the 23rd floor to check on Zack, but Carey said he had left the suite a little while earlier so he could go somewhere and think. And immediately, Cody had a pretty good idea where that place would be. Walking into the Tipton game room, he found Zack concentrating intently on a game. Cody just stood back and waited for Zack to finish his game. And when he heard the unmistakable sound indicating Zack's game was over, Cody finally spoke up.

"I figured I'd find you down here."

Zack turned and sighed. "Is everyone looking for me right now?"

"Well, Mom is giving you some space. And I just wanted to make sure you were alright. I'm sure Maya showing up tonight was the last thing you expected."

Zack slumped his shoulders. "You can say that again..."

"So...what happened?"

Zack shrugged. "Basically, she told me she's going to do whatever it takes to get me back. Even if it means her moving to Boston."

"And how do you feel about that?"

He shrugged again. "I have no idea. My head is telling me no way, but when I first saw her again, Codester, my heart started racing a million miles an hour..."

Cody smiled. "You never quite get used to that feeling, do you?"

Zack just looked at him. "You still get that feeling around Bailey?"

"Of course I do. While we may be totally comfortable around each other, she still does and will always have that effect on me."

Zack sighed again. "So, what do I do when my head is telling me one thing and my heart another?"

Cody grinned again. "Fortunately, you've asked me for advice on something that I have a great deal of experience with." He pointed to Zack's head. "The mind tries to protect us as it has an aversion to pain." He pointed to Zack's heart. "On the other hand, the heart wants what it wants. But when they are at odds with each other, it pretty much tears you part inside. Its like your body is having its own civil war. And it can have very unhealthy consequences..."

"Is that why you had all those bad dreams when you and Bailey were apart?"

Cody nodded. "Pretty much. That's another thing. Your conscious mind and subconscious mind can differ as well. My subconscious knew what my heart was saying. And fortunately or unfortunately, depending on how you look at it, the head and conscious mind is closer to the ears, so its often much louder. But it also has things like ego, hurt and pride clouding its judgment. On the other hand, the heart will also speak the truth. Its just harder to hear it sometimes. You remember how long it took me before I finally listened to mine..."

Zack shuddered. "You mean I have that to look forward to?"

"No. We may be twins, Zack, but we're not the same. How I handled something is not going to be the same way you handle something. All I can tell you is to try listen to your heart and hear what it says. It won't lead you astray."

"You think so?"

"I know so. But the pain and hurt make the brain so much easier to listen to. You have to find a way to block them out and listen to what your heart is really trying to tell you. And only you can figure out what that is..."

Zack nodded. "Thanks, Man. I'll see you upstairs in a little while. I still have some more energy to burn off before I can even think about going to bed."

Cody paused and smiled. "Actually, you won't. I'm staying up in the penthouse tonight."

Zack just looked at him and laughed. "Yeah, right. Like you would dare try to pull that off your first night home. There's no way Mom would buy any excuse you came up with."

Cody shrugged. "She knows and is okay with it."

Zack was incredulous. "Are you serious?"

"Yeah, I am. Turns out Mom had a pretty good idea as to what was already going on. She said she was suspicious over Thanksgiving, but she didn't say anything at the time. Believe me, I thought she was going to freak out, but she didn't. She says we're old enough to make our own decisions, and that she trusts us."

Zack shook his head. "Unbelievable! I can't picture Mom saying that at all...especially if it was me."

Cody laughed. "Of course, her last words to us were that she was way too young to be a grandmother..."

Zack laughed too. "Okay, now that sounds like Mom." He paused. "Glad things are going well for one of us..."

"I think they're going well for the both of us. For one, Bailey and I went ahead and picked up and threw away all of the trash in the new suite. By the time you get home from work tomorrow, we should be ready to paint the whole place."

Zack was impressed. "That is good news."

Cody grinned. "And then there is the other thing. Zack, for the first time...well since Agnes...you are now the hunted and not the hunter. You have a girl willing to do anything to get you back. That doesn't happen very often. Have some fun with it."

__At a Banquet Hall Across Town__

While Zack was now torn up on the inside, he did still have a promise to keep to Amanda that Saturday. The charity event he had agreed to attend with her was being helped to raise money for the Make A Wish Foundation, and upon hearing that, Cody and Bailey agreed to accompany Zack to support it. And they had even rode with Zack in the convertible as he picked up Amanda. Through the early part of the evening, everything was going real well, and Zack was acting the role of a dutiful boyfriend to the hilt. Or so he thought. Eventually, once they were alone, Amanda turned to Zack.

"Okay, what's up with you? You seem really subdued tonight?"

He sighed. "You remember how shell shocked you were when Jake showed up at your door?"

She nodded. "Oh yeah. I definitely remember. Why do you ask?"

"The same thing happened to me on Tuesday night. I was hanging out in the suite with Cody and Bailey when there was a knock at the door. It was Maya..."

Amanda's eyes went wide. "Oh my gosh! What did you do?"

Zack shrugged. "I talked to her and let her say what she wanted to say."

"And what did she have to say?"

"She said she wants me back. And she's willing to move to Boston and do whatever it takes to do it."

She paused. "And what did you tell her?"

"I didn't say much of anything. I didn't say anything to encourage her, but I didn't really say anything to discourage her either."

"Are you thinking of getting back together with her?"

He sighed. "I have no idea. My head is telling me not to, but my heart seems to have other ideas. What it wants though, I have no idea. I don't know if it was just seeing her again or feelings I might still have..."

Amanda nodded. "I know that exact same feeling."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. Jake stopped by to see me the other day. He wanted to know how serious you and I were. I told him it wasn't any of his business, but he said it was. He wanted to know what he was up against in trying to win me back. I didn't know what to say. My head wanted to scream and yell at him, but my heart began fluttering. I didn't know what to think." She paused and laughed. "Zack, we really have to stop having so many things in common..."

Zack laughed too. "Tell me about it."

"You want me to pretend to be your girlfriend to give her some payback?"

He shook his head. "Nah. She already knows I doing this to help you out, so I don't think she would buy it. But, I don't think she was happy at all when she heard what I was doing."

"Probably because she feels like you belong to her."

Zack just shook his head. "But she gave me up!"

Amanda smiled. "I know, but it looks like she's trying to get you back. And at least she was upfront with you about what she wants and didn't try to get sneaky about it."

"I guess."

"Well, no matter what, I'm here for you. If you need anything, just let me know. And if she gives you any trouble, I'll have a word with her myself."

Zack smiled. "Thanks, I appreciate that. And if you give this Jake guy a second chance, he'll have to deal with me if he hurts you again."

__About a Month Later__

It was now the beginning of June in Boston, and everyone's lives had continued on over the past few weeks. For one, the new suite now looked good as new and was ready to be lived in. And since Carey didn't seem to mind, it now had three residents.

For Cody and Bailey, they started work at the Tipton Clinic on the Monday after the charity event. And from the beginning, they were immediately put right to work. For the most part, they were each assigned to assist and basically be a shadow to a doctor. And naturally, Bailey was assigned to a pediatrician. Of course, at times, since they were the low men on the totem pole, they had to do some grunt work like emptying bed pans. But they didn't mind at all as they were getting a first hand view of their chosen profession. And to make things even easier on them, they were given scrubs to wear so they didn't have to worry about getting dressed up for work.

And at the beginning of the month, they both got something in the mail they had been waiting on – their grades. Unlike the previous semester, Bailey had her mail for the summer forwarded to the penthouse, so she would actually be getting to open up her letter along side Cody. And like the previous semester, they had dominated and pulled all A's again. They liked teasing Zack that while he had a 3.76 for the spring semester, they still did better at a much more difficult school.

As for their summers, beyond working for the clinic, they did the jobs London asked of them. Likewise, London kept her promise and set it up for Bailey to head back to Kettlecorn for a long weekend each month. In May, she had chosen to head home for Mother's Day. Cody would have gone with her, but they both felt they didn't want to rock the boat with Carey. So, he stayed in Boston, celebrated with her and had his mother sent a dozen roses. In June, Bailey was going to head home for Father's Day. And since Cody hadn't heard anything from Kurt, he agreed to go back to Kettlecorn with her. But the Monday before Father's Day, his plans changed.

They were in Zack and Cody's suite just relaxing after a busy day at work when there was a knock at the door. Cody got up to answer it, and he was surprised to see his Dad standing there grinning at him.

"Dad?"

"Cody!" Kurt pulled Cody into a bear hug. "So good to see my boy again!"

When Kurt released him, Cody turned. "Dad, you remember Bailey, don't you?"

By then, Bailey had gotten up to. She smiled. "Nice to see you again, Mr. Martin."

Kurt grinned. "Of course I remember you, Bailey. Nice to see you again too. And please, call me Kurt. Mr. Martin was my father and Cody's grandfather."

Cody, noticing they were still dressed in scrubs, spoke up. "Dad, I know we might be dressed kind of funny, but Bailey and I are working this summer..."

Kurt cut him off though. "At the Tipton Clinic over by Fenway. I know. Nice scrubs by the way." He grinned. "Cody, it may take me a while to get through your...novellas, but I do eventually read them all of them. And from I've read, I also believe I owe you two a congratulations of sorts, right? You two added an extra step to the process, but I believe I'm on the road to having a daughter-in-law."

That caused Cody to smile which in turn made Bailey smile. "Thank you, Mr...Kurt."

"It should be me thanking you. You're taking care of my youngest for me, challenging him to kick Yale in the butt, and from what he says, making him ridiculously happy. For all of that, you have my deepest thanks."

Bailey kind of blushed. "Well, he does the same thing for me."

Cody paused. "Dad, we didn't even know you were coming. Why did you call us?"

Kurt grinned again. "I know. At the last minute, I was able to get away, and I figured I'd jump at the chance to spend time with my boys. And you too, Bailey. I look forward to getting to know you better myself."

"I'd like that, Kurt. Unfortunately, I'm leaving Friday evening to go spend time with my Dad and won't be back until Sunday evening."

"I can understand that. Well, that gives us till Thursday night then. And that will give me a chance to have the weekend with my two boys. In a couple of weeks, it might be over six months before I see them again..."

Cody frowned. "Six months? You'll be gone for six months?"

"Yeah. That was my other surprise. My band and I have been offered to opportunity be the opening act of a big name group on their European tour."

Cody paused. "That's good I guess."

Kurt paused too. "And when I get back, I fully plan on stopping and finally seeing you guys in Connecticut. It should be late January by then, and this time, I plan on keeping my promise to see you guys." He tried to make a joke. "Besides, a couple of weeks ago, I caught that movie about the Skulls on late night TV. I need to make sure you guys aren't being recruited into a cult or something..."

That caused Cody to laugh. "I don't think you have to worry about that, Dad. To be in one of those groups, we'd have to have some long lost wealthy or powerful relative that neither one of us knows about..."

Kurt laughed. "No one like that on my side of the family for sure." He paused. "Speaking of my family, where is your brother?"

"Oh, his Spanish II class was having a review session tonight for a test they're having in the class tomorrow. He's there studying."

Kurt just looked at Cody and shook his head in disbelief. "Okay, I think I've entered the twilight zone. You're here all alone in a suite with your girlfriend while Zack is at a study session..."

Bailey had to laugh at that. "Well, you can rest assure that your son is always a gentleman. And you can take my word that Cody's done his fair share of studying this past year. We both came close a few times to slipping into finals madness..."

"Well, from what I've seen, its working for you both. When Zack gets back, I'd like to take you all out to dinner. This should be a time to celebrate."

Cody paused. "I'm not so sure Zack will be in the mood. For the past month, he's kind of been in kind of a funk."

"Why? What happened a month ago? You didn't mention anything in your e-mails."

"I figured Zack would have told you. Maya came back to see him."

Kurt frowned. "Maya? The girl that dumped him right before graduation last year?"

Cody nodded. "The one and the same."

Kurt shook his head. "What did she want?"

"She wants Zack back..."

Kurt sighed. "Oh boy..."

Zack did eventually show up, and everyone did go our for dinner. But Kurt wasn't too disappointed when Zack said he had to head back to finish studying for his exam. In fact, he wasn't sure he'd ever been prouder of his oldest son. For the rest of that week, Kurt continued spending time with his boys and getting to know Bailey better. And by the time Cody took her to the airport on Friday evening, he had seen with his own two eyes just how close those two were. And that made him happy to see one of his boys so happy. So, while they were gone to the airport, he turned his attention to his other son.

"So, Zack...I heard about Maya coming to see you..."

Zack sighed. "I should have figured you would have by now."

"I don't envy the situation you've found yourself in. But, I do have to ask...any idea what you are going to do about it?"

Zack shook his head. "Not a clue. Like I was telling Cody, my head and my heart seem to be of two different opinions on the matter. Or at least I think they are..."

Kurt nodded. "Understandable. And I know my past history with women proves I'm no expert on them..."

"Me either Dad. Kind of sad that of the Martin men that Cody is the most successful one of us, huh?"

Kurt laughed. "I wouldn't say that. He just got lucky in that he found the one he wants and who wants him. Something you and I are both still looking for. Unfortunately, I can find one who wants me, and you aren't sure you want the one who wants you."

"She hurt me bad, Dad."

"I know. I was there. But, if I can try to offer some fatherly advice...people do make mistakes, Zack. I've made my fair share, and I know you have too. But I've learned its how people deal with their mistakes and learn from them that is the real story."

Zack sighed again. "I know, and but I don't know if I can trust her again. With her, actions speak louder than words."

Kurt nodded. "Again, that's understandable. But Zack, if she does try to back up what she says, that unfortunately and undeservedly puts the ball back in to your court. If you still can't forgive her, you have to tell her. And if you are able to forgive her, then you can't constantly keep it hanging over her head. Do what's the best for you but try to be gentle about it."

"I will, Dad. But I still don't have the foggiest clue if I'll ever see her again. Its been over a month, but I haven't heard back from her again."

Of course, those words would soon come back to bite Zack in the butt. After finishing his Spanish II class at Beacon Hill Community College, he did get the week off Moseby promised him. But at the beginning of July, he began BU with a course called SHA HF 100, Introduction to the Hospitality Industry.

And that course, for someone who had lived in a hotel or on a cruise ship since he was twelve and worked for another one for a year, it was almost too easy for Zack. He even briefly wondered if that was how Cody felt in other classes. But the important thing to him was that he was starting off on the right foot at BU. And he was glad that his professional and academic lives were going so well as his personal life was still in a disarray.

On the inside, he was still torn. Part of him wanted to believe that Maya meant what she said, but there was enough uncertainty inside him that he just couldn't let that take hold. It was approaching two months since he had last saw her and nothing. Well, that was until one afternoon when he heard his name as he was leaving his summer school class.

"ZACK!"

Upon hearing his name called, Zack looked around in surprise. As far as he knew, he didn't really know anyone that well at BU yet. And Amanda wasn't going to begin classes until the fall. But as he turned around, he saw her again – Maya. And Zack didn't know how to feel in that instant. Was he surprised to see her or was he angry...or was he happy to see her?

He shook his head to clear his thoughts as she made her way over to him. "Maya? What are you doing here?"

She smiled at him. "I told you I would be here. I got my acceptance letter to BU soon after I saw you that day. I've been taking summer school classes here all summer hoping to see you around. Plus, by starting summer school, I was able to get into a single dorm room in an all girl's dorm early that I will be able to keep all year."

Zack had to laugh. "And they told me all the dorms were full. Wonder why I couldn't get a room in there?"

Maya just gave him a look but composed herself. "Well, I thought you would be enjoying your new suite at the Tipton?"

"Oh, I am. Its like having the freedom of being back on the boat again except without Moseby around. Well, almost, he still tells me what to do at work. But its different now. Cody doesn't pick up after me anymore. And the only time he cooks for me is when he makes dinner for Bailey and he and there are leftovers. But I can now sit on the couch and do nothing without Mom getting on my case."

She nodded. "And are you still...acting like that Amanda girl's boyfriend?"

He shook his head. "Nah. After seeing the hurt look on his face the night of the event, she finally told him the truth. According to her, the look of relief on his face was priceless."

"So, are those two back together now?"

"No. But he seems to have taken a page out of your book and is determined to get her back."

"Well, I wish him luck then..."

Zack paused. "Why? You don't know either of them."

"I have my reasons."

He paused again and sighed. "I already told you. She's just a friend of mine."

She looked him in the eyes. "Until I have you back, I have to view every other woman as my competition. Until you tell me you no longer want me in your life, I'm not going to give up."

"Maya..."

She shook her head. "Don't. This is my penance and punishment. I just saw you on campus and wanted to let you know I was here." Maya really wanted to keep talking to him now that she had found him again, but she didn't want to come on too strong right off the bat. That's why she hadn't returned back to the Tipton so she could give him some space. So, Maya just smiled. "And you know now, so...I'll see you around Zack." And with that, she just walked away from him.

And naturally, that left Zack standing there watching her walk away...even more confused than ever.

__To be Continued...__


	3. Something's Different

_Episode 3_

__"Something's Different"__

__I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did.__

__Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them.__

__Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves.__

__And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so...__

__Kettlecorn__

At the end of July, Cody finally accompanied Bailey back to Kettlecorn for her birthday weekend. And all the Picketts teased him and gave him a hard time for not suddenly not showing up the previous month. But they did understand his Dad just showing up like that, and they were all glad to see that Cody's wrist was healed up and completely back to normal too. In fact, the only part of the long weekend that could have been considered a downer is when the family went out to eat after church on Sunday. They were seated in Kettlecorn's lone small restaurant, and Cody and Bailey couldn't help but notice Moose and his family seated across the dining room. And all throughout their meal, they did their best to ignore him, but it was obvious to everyone that he was staring daggers at them. As they waited on the birthday cake to be brought to Bailey, Cody excused himself to go to the bathroom.

Grammy Pickett had noticed Moose's behavior and turned to Bailey and whispered. "Seems like someone is still holding a grudge..."

Bailey nodded and whispered back. "I think you're right, but what am I supposed to do, Grammy? I tried to be nice about it, but that didn't work. And when I was honest with him, he acted like was the antichrist."

"Bailey, there are sometimes and some people you just can't win with no matter what you do. But if I were you, I wouldn't worry too much about it. You're happy with your life and have you a fine young man in Cody. Moose just needs to grow up and stop acting like someone took away his favorite toy. I hate to say it, but its probably good that after tomorrow, you won't be back here until Christmas time."

"I know, Grammy. I just wish I knew of a way to get it through his thick skull that he needs to move on with his life. Its not healthy to hold a grudge like this."

Grammy smiled. "I know. Especially when you didn't do anything wrong."

Bailey sighed. "Its not me I'm worried about. I can take care of myself. I'm worried about Cody. The last time, Moose attacked him from behind, and Cody had no chance. What if Moose got stupid and did something like that again, but this time had a weapon or something." She shook her head. "And Grammy, I love him to death, but Cody isn't the most physically intimidating person in the world..."

Unfortunately for Bailey, as she said that last part, someone overheard her – Cody. And as much as what she said was true, it still stung him badly. But since it was her birthday, he decided to just try to forget about it.

__Boston__

Once the calendar turned to August, Zack was in the homestretch of his summer class. And on one such afternoon, he had another encounter with Maya again where she simply had just said hello to him before walking off towards her dorm. This caused him to be even more confused as to her behavior, and when he got home, he just slumped back into the couch. A few minutes later, Cody got home from work and slouched down next to him onto the other side of the couch.

"What's your problem?"

Cody sighed. "Its nothing. I went to pick up a box of vaccines today, and Bailey wouldn't let me do it by myself. She said it looked like a two person job..."

"So?"

"Well, that's on top of her telling her grandmother while we were in Kettlecorn that I'm not the most physically intimidating person in the world..."

Zack rolled his eyes. "Again, so?"

"It stings..."

"Codester. You've never been physically strong! Do I have to remind you of the trouble you had pulling in that sardine in Antarctica?"

"I know, but..."

"But what? You've always had the arm strength of a gerbil."

"Explain me lifting that heavy case in Greece then..."

"Fluke?"

Cody sighed. "It doesn't matter. But maybe I want to be more physically intimidating, though. I want her to be proud of me."

Zack laughed. "She already loves you and has pretty much already agreed to marry you. I think by now its safe to say your physical stature or lack of one is not a big deal to her."

Cody sighed again. "Still..."

"Look, if you want to do something about it, then do it. Didn't you tell me that your new dorm has a really nice gym in it?"

"Well, yeah..."

Zack smirked. "I know you're the smart one, but to build muscle, you have to work out and lift weights regularly. That's the only way. This isn't the _Nutty__ Professor_. There will be no chemistry experiments you can use to get around it."

Cody nodded as he pondered that. "You know, Zack...I think you're right. Maybe I will give it a shot." He paused. "Okay, what's got you down?"

It was Zack's turn to sigh this time. "Maya..."

"Why? What's she doing? I know you said she's on BU's campus taking summer classes too. Is she constantly hounding you and not giving you any space?"

Zack shook his head. "Actually, its the exact opposite. She's giving me too much space. She'll say hello to me and then just walk away."

Cody just looked at him. "Seriously?"

"Yeah. And its totally blowing my mind. I figured by now she'd ask me to see a movie or something like that. But nothing. Nada. Zilch. Zero."

Both just shook their heads and sighed. "Women..." Zack groaned. "Can't live with them..."

Cody groaned too. "And can't live without them..."

As August continued to roll on, it was getting closer and closer to the time that Cody and Bailey were due to head back to New Haven and begin their sophomore years at Yale. The dorms were scheduled to open on Wednesday the 22nd before classes started back a week later on the 29th. But since the dining halls wouldn't be open until the weekend in between, they figured it made sense to wait until Saturday to move in. Plus, freshmen were due to move in on Friday and would be busy with orientation on Saturday. With them off, they figured it would make things less crowded and easier on them to move in. And calls to Tapeworm and Gertie confirmed that they were agreeable to that date as well. So, they decided that the 22nd would be their final day working, and that would give them two days to get everything packed up and ready to head out.

And while they were preparing to go back to school, Zack would be finishing up his summer school session. His final class of the semester was the 20th and his final was on the following Friday. As he walked out of his final, he felt good knowing he had no more school until September the 4th. That would be a week and a half break for him not to have to open a book once. He would worry about the fall semester when it started...though one of his classes would be a field experience class that he would get school credit for doing his job. That thought actually did bring a smile to his face.

As he was walking across campus towards the subway stop, he once again heard his name being shouted out. But by this time, he recognized who the voice belonged to. Turning around, he saw Maya running up to him smiling.

"Hey! Just get out of your final too?"

Zack nodded. "Yeah. Not more than fifteen minutes ago. I was just on my way to go take a nap."

Maya laughed. "Same here. Not having taken a final in over a year, it was a little weird at first. But I think I did pretty good. I guess I'm going to have to get used to school and tests again."

Zack smiled. "Been there. Last fall, it took me a little while to get back into the swing of things. Eventually, you'll get the hang of it again."

"Well, I'm glad to have some time to do nothing now." She paused and decided it was time to go for it. "Since we're both done, how about we do something this weekend to celebrate our new found freedom?"

And even though it shouldn't have, Maya finally asking him to do something caught Zack completely off guard. He didn't know what to do or to say. "Do something to celebrate? Ummm...I can't. You see..." He racked his brain trying to think of anything to get him out of it. And that's when he said the first thing that came to mind. "...Cody and Bailey are moving back to New Haven in the morning. I'm helping them pack up tonight and then driving down with them in the morning to help them move in their things. I won't be back until late. Sorry."

Maya was undeterred though. She knew she had spent over a month not pushing things, but with school starting again in a few weeks, it was time to be a presence in his life again. She wanted to be on his mind before the rest of the co-eds returned back to campus. "I can understand that. You want some company? I could ride down with you and help out. That way, you wouldn't have to drive all the way back by yourself."

Zack just looked at her in surprise at her offer. But before he knew what had happened, he had spoken. "Sure. Sounds good. Be at the Tipton tomorrow morning by 8:00 AM."

Maya just smiled. "I'll be there!"

Thirty minutes and a subway ride later, Zack was walking back into his suite at the Tipton still kicking mentally kicking himself. And he saw Cody and Bailey organizing their things preparing for their move the next day. So, he just spoke up.

"Hey guys. Can I ask you two a favor..."

Both looked up at Zack as he explained that he needed to help them move in the next day and why.

Cody laughed. "Let me get this straight. You told Maya you were helping us move in, and she believed you?"

Zack sighed. "Yeah, I did...So, you don't have to cram everything into your car in the morning."

Cody just grinned. "But there's plenty of space for all of our stuff. We appreciate the offer Zack, but its not necessary."

"Come on, Codester. I'm begging you here. This has to look believable."

"Why? Why not call her back and say we don't need your help after all?"

Zack sighed again. "Because if I do, she'll want to do something this weekend. And after I agreed to her offer of help earlier, I don't trust myself with what I'll say. This way, I'll least have you guys as a buffer. Come on, guys...please?"

Cody kept grinning and turned to Bailey. "Maybe there is something that we could do that would make having your car necessary. We did talk to Tapeworm and Gertie about buying bookshelves and futons when we got to New Haven, but if its that important to you, I guess we can call them to see if they minded us buying them tonight..."

Zack sighed in relief. "I would be grateful to all four of you..."

Bailey grinned this time. "So are we, Zack. It means so much to us that you are willing to pay for a third of each one of them. We're touched."

Zack's eyes went wide. "But...but...but I did no such thing! That's...that's...that's blackmail!"

Cody laughed. "Maybe, maybe not. But that's the only way your car will be necessary. And once this is done, you can consider us even for you trying to blackmail me back on the ship while we were in Thailand."

Bailey shook her head and glared at Zack. "Yeah, I'm still not happy about you doing that." She paused. "Though, Cody's potty training video was adorable..."

Cody groaned. "Okay, do this, and we're even for you doing that too."

Zack sighed and realized he was between a rock and a hard place. "Fine..."

So after a quick call to Tapeworm and Gertie, Bailey, Cody and Zack went shopping. And even though Zack was relieved they didn't go to a high end store, he was still grumbling that he had to pay close to three hundred dollars of his own money because he hadn't come up with a better answer to Maya. And even worse was listening to Cody and Bailey talk about what they had bought nonstop on the way home. He could have cared less that Cody had chosen a navy black mattress or that Bailey had chosen a blue one. All he knew was that the one Cody chose better be comfortable when he slept on it when he came to visit.

The next morning, Zack was awake by 7:00 AM, but he wasn't surprised to see Cody and Bailey already up, dressed, and loading up luggage carts they hall pulled into the suite. He just shook his head and headed for the bathroom. By the time Maya arrived, both cars were filled to the brim. And it was a good thing Zack's car had a fold down backseat and was a convertible as the futons and bookshelves needed all of available space. And by 8:15, Cody and Bailey had said their goodbyes to Carey and were ready to get out on the road.

The drive to New Haven couldn't have been any more different in the two cars. For Cody and Bailey, it was filled with talk of excitement about the upcoming semester. For, Zack and Maya, well, it was a little bit awkward. Fortunately for Zack, with them having to have the top down, the wind created a lot of noise and made it difficult to talk. So, he was thankful to just turn up the radio and listen to it as they drove.

__New Haven__

About 11:00 AM, both cars pulled up along side Berkeley North and were fortunate to find a couple of temporary parking spaces close to it to make moving things in easier. While Cody and Bailey headed inside to get their keys, Zack decided to be proactive and begin unloading Cody's car. When they returned, the four of them began the process of taking all of their bags up to their respective rooms.

When Maya looked around Bailey's room, she could only shake her head in amazement. "You two are actually living in a castle. This place is amazing!"

Bailey smiled. "Yeah, it is. We really lucked out in getting the rooms we did for this year."

"I imagine so. My dorm room is nothing like this. Its designed more like a prison cell."

Bailey nodded as she wondered whether to actually ask the question that had been on her mind all morning. She decided to just go for it. "Maya, can I ask you something?"

"Sure."

"Are you really serious about this? About getting Zack back?"

Without missing a beat, Maya nodded. "Yeah, I am. I know I made a mistake before, and I'm trying to make up for it. All I want is a second chance to be with the guy I love. You of all people should know what that's like, right?"

Bailey paused. "Yeah, I do. And I feel so lucky that I have Cody again, so I can completely understand where you're coming from. But at the same time, Zack is my future brother-in-law. I saw firsthand how miserable he was last summer. And over the past year, I've seen him gradually pull himself out of the funk he was in and begin to move on with his life. So, one hand, I want everyone to know the same kind of happiness that I have with Cody. But, on the other, as he will one day be family, I don't want to see him hurt all over again. I hope you can understand that."

Maya nodded again. "I can completely understand that. I also understand I have a long road to go before I convince everyone that I am serious in my intentions. More importantly, I have a long way to go to prove that to Zack. But I'm in this for the long haul."

"Well, if you are sincere, I wish you the best of luck then."

"Thank you. I hope someday he and I can have our relationship be as serious as yours and Cody's."

Meanwhile, one floor below in Cody's room, Zack and Cody were hauling up Cody's things into his room.

Zack panted. "Okay, this room is much nicer than your old one. Which side is yours?"

Cody was breathing hard too. "I don't know yet. Tapeworm is the reason we have this room, so he gets first pick of bedrooms. Lets just unload everything in the common room for the time being."

"I say we go start carrying up the futons while we still have energy. Not only do you not have an elevator, but its about 95 degrees outside and you just turned on the AC when we walked in."

Cody nodded. "Good call. Lets get Bailey's first. I'll show her that I'm strong enough by carrying hers up to her room for her."

Zack shook his head. "Great. I'll get to destroy my back so you can try to impress your girlfriend who doesn't care in the first place. Should be fun."

"Quit complaining. By the way, how was the ride up here with just you and Maya in the car."

Zack shrugged. "With the top down, it made things difficult to talk over. So, that helped."

"Yeah, but on the way back, it won't be down. Try talking to her. Trust me, Zack. I don't think she bites."

Fifteen minutes later, Zack and Cody were carrying up the futon box with the mattress laying on top of it still in its wrapping. And the whole way, Zack complained asking why they couldn't have done that in two trips. And when they got to Bailey's room, she and Maya were surprised to see them carrying everything in.

"Cody! Why didn't you come and get us to help?"

He just smiled. "No need to. We've got this taken care of."

The girls insisted on helping on the next trip. So, while Zack and Cody once again carried in a futon box and mattress, Maya and Bailey stacked up the bookshelf boxes and carried them up. And since those weren't as heavy, they were moving a little faster than the guys. They dropped Cody's off in his room before carrying her's upstairs. And with that all done, the cars were now empty, and all that was left to do was to start assembling things. Trying to put off the drive back to Boston a little while, Zack volunteered to help.

"Its not a problem guys. I want to help. Besides, if I come back for Halloween again this year, I want to make sure the futon doesn't collapse on me in the middle of the night."

Cody smiled and shook his head. "I think we can handle it, Zack. I'm sure you'd rather get back to Boston before its late. Besides, if you do have a repeat of Halloween again this year, I don't think you'd notice if it collapsed on you."

Bailey had to laugh at that. "Anyways, how about we all go out for lunch on us? And you can follow us to the parking garage for us to drop of the car and drop us off back here."

Maya nodded her agreement, and Zack nodded too in resignation. But just then, his temporary reprieve opened the door and walked in.

"Tapeworm!"

Tapeworm stopped dead in his tracks with bags in both of his hands. "Zack? What are you doing here?"

Zack laughed nervously. "I'm here to help Cody and Bailey move in of course. Why don't we help you get the rest of your things too while we're here?"

"Ummm...okay." He noticed Maya standing there. "Is this Amanda?"

Zack, Cody, and Bailey all winced as Maya fought to keep her composure. "No, actually, I'm Maya."

"Maya?" And that caused Tapeworm to have a lightbulb moment. "THE MAYA?"

She nodded. "Yeah. I take it you've heard of me."

Zack spoke up. "Yeah. Maya, this is Tapeworm. He's an old buddy of mine and Cody's from back in the day." When no one else said anything, he spoke up again. "So, lets go get your stuff, Man..."

Tapeworm just paused looking back and forth between everyone in the room. "Okay..."

So, that's what they did. And once Tapeworm's stuff was all moved in, he joined them for lunch in town before beginning to unpack. Zack kept trying to stretch out lunch, but Bailey, Cody and Tapeworm all said they had to be getting back to unpack. Realizing he was out of options and that it was time to head home and actually be alone with Maya again, Zack nodded in defeat. After picking up everyone at the parking garage and dropping them back off at Berkeley North, it was time to head home.

__Cody and Tapeworm's Room__

The three of them figured they would start with the things in Cody and Tapeworm's room. They started with the futon and opened the box the frame was in. They spread everything out, and remembering the frustrations Moseby once had, they made sure they had all the necessary parts. And once they were sure they did, they began putting it together. After fifteen minutes, they were all huddle around the instructions trying to figure them out.

Cody sighed. "You would think that three Yale students should be able to figure this out..."

Bailey just smiled at him. "Think of it this way. Once we get it right the first time, the second time will be a breeze."

A half hour later, they finally had everything figured out, and the futon was up and functioning. The three of them stepped back to admire their handy work. Cody just nodded. "All we have to do is Scotchguard it, and it will be done."

While it was drying, Tapeworm chose which room he wanted, and he began moving his stuff into there. Bailey and Cody moved his things in to his before beginning project #2 – his bookshelf. Fortunately, it was a whole lot easier to assemble as its instructions actually made sense. Once that was done, Cody began unpacking his bags while Bailey went up to her room to do the same thing. After both of the guys were settled in, they stopped to mount the flatscreen television again on the wall in the common room. Then, they put up posters and other things to add to the room's ambiance.

Tapeworm just nodded and smiled. "Cody...I think we have ourselves a real man cave in here now. Well, we will once we pick up our fridge."

Cody checked his watch. "They're open for another hour. Might as well go ahead and get that taken care of."

He called Bailey to let her know what their plan was, and she said she would go to get the one for her and Gertie's room. Fortunately, the pickup was only two blocks away as it was a humorous site seeing the three of them struggling to carry the two mini fridges back to their dorm. It was even more frustrating for Cody as carrying in the futon boxes had left his muscles sore. So, he had to watch as Tapeworm carried one as he and Bailey jointly carried the other one.

__Zack's Car __

As they drove along the interstate back towards Boston, it was initially quiet in the car. But after a while, Maya finally spoke up.

"Zack? Is everything okay?"

He kept his eyes focused on the road. "What do you mean?"

She paused. "Well, all day, it seems like you've tried to avoid having to be alone with me and talk to me. I was just wondering why."

He glanced over and just gave her a look. "You're wondering why?"

Maya nodded. "Yeah, I am. It just seems like you are reluctant to be around me..."

Zack couldn't help himself and began laughing. "Are you serious? You're asking me if I'm reluctant to be around you?"

"Yeah, I am. Besides the obvious, have I done something else to make you uncomfortable with me?"

He paused to collect himself. "I can't win here. Everytime I've run into you on campus, you've always been brief with me before running off. You've been reluctant to spend time with me, but you dare ask me if I'm doing the same to you?"

Maya sighed. "Okay, you've got me there. I just figured if I was constantly in your face, it would be counter productive to what I was trying to accomplish. I figured I'd show you I was keeping my word but that I wasn't trying to push you."

Zack paused to consider that. "Okay, I guess I can kind of see that, but at the same time, it was sending me mixed messages. I was reluctant to be alone with you because I had no idea what to expect. In fact, I was surprised you wanted to come with me today with how much you were avoiding me."

She nodded. "And I guess I can see that. But I knew with school starting back in a couple of weeks, I had to do something. I decided it was time to try to become a more substantial part of your life..."

He shook his head. "Maya, these games back and forth are getting us nowhere. But you're right about something. Its like I was last summer - stuck in neutral. But this time, its both of us that are getting nowhere..."

"You're right. So, what should we do about it?"

__Bailey's room__

The three of them quickly put together Bailey's bookshelf before tackling the second futon. As they were putting it together, Cody smiled over at Bailey and winked.

"You were right. It is so much easier the second time. We know what mistakes to avoid this time around..."

She smiled back. "I don't think wiser words have ever been spoken..."

Tapeworm shook his head. "And to think...I actually missed the banter between the two of you over the summer. What was I thinking?"

Cody laughed. "Don't worry, Man. This year, we're going to find you a girlfriend. Then, it will be your turn to nauseate us..."

And no more than a few seconds after he had said that, the door burst open, and there stood Gertie holding her bags smiling at them. "Hey guys! I'm back!"

But everyone was speechless. Standing before them was not the same Gertie they remembered. Her hair now looked expertly styled. Her think glasses were gone, and her green eyes were now actually noticeable. Tapeworm wasn't sure, but for some reason, those eyes looked familiar to him. And she was dressed in a much more stylish outfit. Finally Bailey spoke up.

"Gertie? Is that you? You look amazing!"

__To be Continued...__


	4. The Friend Zone

_Episode 4_

__"The Friend Zone"__

__I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did.__

__Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them.__

__Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves.__

__And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so...__

__New Haven__

Gertie just stood there and smiled seeing everyone's reaction. But no offense to Bailey and Cody, those two weren't the ones she hoped really liked her no look. In particular, she tried her best to gauge Tapeworm's reaction out of the corner of her eye.

"You guys really like it?"

Bailey nodded. "Definitely. You look a completely different person. I almost didn't recognize you." She smiled. "But I hope its just your exterior that's changed."

Gertie laughed. "Don't worry, I'm still the same person underneath. But I decided a new year deserved a new look. So, I saw a stylist for my hair and a fashion consultant for my wardrobe. For some reason, neither one cared for my old look. And even better, I've permanently freed myself from ever having to wear my glasses and contacts again. Well, mostly my glasses as I rarely wore my contacts because they dried my eyes out so bad. Earlier this summer, I finally had my eyes lasered. I just wish I had thought to have it done years ago."

Cody laughed. "I know that feeling. Kind of weird experience, isn't it?"

"You've had yours done too?"

He nodded. "Several years ago. Astigmatism here."

"Myopia here. And yes, it was really strange. I figured they would put me under, but I was awake the whole time. And I admit...I was kind of freaked out."

Cody laughed again. "Yeah, especially when you smell something burning, and you realize its the doctor using a laser to reshape your corneas..."

"Yeah, that part almost made me sick. But, it was worth it because I actually got to buy my first ever real pair of sunglasses. No more prescription ones for me!"

Tapeworm finally spoke. "Well, you look amazing. I'm guessing you'll probably have to beat the guys off with a stick around here."

She just smiled at him. "I guess we'll just have to see about that, won't we?"

Bailey then spoke up again. "Are the rest of your things downstairs? We'll help you bring them up."

"Yeah, my driver from the airport is waiting outside. Oh yeah, I have the TV like I said I would." She turned to Tapeworm. "As I recall, you're really good with electronics. Would you mind helping me set it up and mount it up on the wall?"

He couldn't help but smile. "Not at all..."

__Somewhere on I-95 in Rhode Island__

Zack glanced over at Maya again before focusing back on the road.

"To be perfectly honest, Maya, I have no idea. I've never found myself in a situation like this before. I don't know what the proper protocol is. If you happen to know what it is, I'm all ears..."

"No clue here either..." She sighed. "I just wish we could go back to the way we were before. You know, before I royally screwed everything up..."

"I don't think we can. Like I told you before, I'm not the same person I was back then. And I'm sure you're not the same person you were then either. Face it, we've both grown up a lot since then. Essentially, we're two strangers right now."

"So, what do we do?"

He paused to think. "I guess all we can do is start from the beginning and try to get to know each other again. I won't lie, I do still have feelings for you. But I have no idea what they are right now..."

Maya's frustration was building. "Well, I know how I feel!"

Zack kept his cool though. "How can you? You know how you felt about the old me. How do you know you'll even like the new version?"

"Because I just know I will..."

"Maya, there is also the issue that I'm still hesitant around you. You can tell me all of these things, but again, I'm still very leery about getting burned again. Plus, once trust is broken, its very hard to get back again."

Maya sighed. "And I completely understand that. And I'm willing to do whatever it takes for as long as it takes for you to get past this..."

He laughed. "It won't happen overnight, that I'm sure of. And there's no guarantee that I ever will..."

"So, where does that leave us right now?"

Zack shrugged. "Again, I don't have a clue. Right now, the best I can offer you is the chance for us to be friends again. I'm just not ready for anything more than that right now. But, look at it this way, that's not a bad thing. I've seen enough from Cody and Bailey and Woody and Addison that a friendship is a good foundation for a relationship. So, if it does one day move further along, that's a good foundation. I mean, all summer, I got to watch Cody and Bailey up close as she spent most every night in our suite..."

That surprised Maya. "Are you saying that those two are...you know?"

He shrugged again. "I have no idea. Either way, its none of my business." He paused and laughed. "And to be honest, I'd rather not think of my brother in that way. But I do know that beyond loving each other, they are each other's best friend. That's why they enjoy spending so much time with each other. And that's something I want too. I want to be able to be myself in a relationship. You know, have it where I don't always have to be on my game or talking to fill an uncomfortable silence in the room."

Again, Maya was surprised. "Are you saying that's how you viewed our first relationship?"

"I didn't say that exactly. I will admit that I was constantly trying to impress you. But I can't do that forever, nor would I want to. I want someone I can just be completely comfortable with. I know I'm not perfect nor ever will I be. I have my faults, and I am trying to better myself. But I'll never be Mr. Perfect."

"I'm wasn't asking you to be either now or then..."

"I know, but I wanted to be upfront with you about some things. Things that I feel are important to me. If you can't handle those..."

Maya cut him off. "I can handle them, but you also have to realize that while you're not Mr. Perfect...the concept or the former wrestler...I'm not Miss Perfect. I think I've proven that quite well already. Zack, I just want a chance."

"Then can you accept us trying to be friends first?"

She paused and smiled. "I think I can. You know I want more, but I'm willing to take it one step at a time to get there."

__Cody and Tapeworm's Room__

After their first full day back on campus, everyone just hung out in the guys' room watching some TV after dinner. Once it got late, Bailey and Gertie headed upstairs for bed while the guys continued watching the Sox play a game in Houston.

"Is it just me, or is it weird to think of the Astros as an American League team now?"

Cody nodded. "Definitely. But look at it this way, if there had been two wild cards last year, the Sox would have made the playoffs."

"True..." Tapeworm paused and smiled. "Speaking of things that are weird, I'm surprised Bailey isn't staying down here tonight or you up there..."

Cody laughed. "Well, we figured with it being our first night back being around you guys that we should hangout with our roommates. But if you don't want me around..."

Tapeworm laughed too. "I didn't say that. I just kind of figured..."

"Well, all summer we stayed together in Zack and my new suite. But Bailey didn't think it would be right to leave Gertie all alone up their room all by herself all the time. And, we didn't want to put either of you out by having to deal with two roommates instead of one. Plus, she figured that on school nights, we'd stay in our own rooms so we wouldn't distract the other from getting a good night's sleep." He grinned. "But on the weekends..."

"That's all I needed to know..." Tapeworm paused again. "Can I ask you something?"

"Shoot."

"Was it just me, or was there something...I don't know...really familiar about the new Gertie?"

Cody just looked at him like his was crazy. "Of course she's familiar. We've know here since January. She was Bailey's roommate last semester, remember?"

Tapeworm sighed. "I mean beyond that. It was like I had known her from somewhere before that..."

"Of course you had. She was the girl you said you saw last fall in the library..."

He stopped to consider that. "Maybe that's it. Its just seeing her like that...I don't know...felt like deja vu."

Cody laughed. "Don't tell me you're having second thoughts and seeing her as potentially more than a friend now. I thought you were still holding out hope for your mysterious Catwoman?"

Tapeworm shook his head. "Nah. I mean, she's cool and all, but I'm sure I'm well into the friend zone by now. Besides, with how good she looks now, she could have almost anyone guy she wanted. Why would she want a guy like me?"

"Go easier on yourself, Bud. You're a good guy that some girl is going to be lucky to have. Besides, if a guy like me can get someone like Bailey, anything is possible."

"Thanks, Man." He sighed and stood up. "Well, this game is a blow out. I'm going to go change and head downstairs..."

Cody checked the clock. "Its almost midnight. Have some place you have to be?"

Tapeworm laughed. "Nah. Its just this summer, I worked for my Dad at the college he works at. One of the perks of working for the college was free access to the school's gym, and I began working out a little. I figure we have our own one here in the basement, might as well use it too."

Cody paused as he thought about that. "Mind if I join you? I've been thinking about getting into better shape myself."

"Sure. I figured I'd start doing it before bed as it would probably be emptier down there, and once I was tired, I could just go on to bed and sleep it off."

"Good idea. Maybe we could do this Sunday through Thursday nights and then give ourselves the weekends to heal. Besides, not that I don't want Bailey to know, but I'd like me doing this to be a surprise for her."

Tapeworm grinned. "Works for me. I won't say anything to her."

__Bailey and Gertie's Room__

As the ladies were getting ready for bed, they decided they weren't quite tired yet either, so they hung out in their common room and broke in their new TV. And as they did, Bailey turned to Gertie.

"I have to ask. Was there a particular reason for your sudden change?" She smiled. "You know, maybe a certain guy you were trying to impress?"

Gertie blushed and paused. "Well, actually...yeah...sort of."

"Did you meet someone over the summer?"

"Sort of..." She sighed. "Lets just say I had a major revelation about certain things."

"I'm listening."

"Well, you remember last spring that I told you there was a guy I had met that I hoped to meet again and get to know better?"

"I remember..." Bailey paused. "Did you run into this guy again over the summer?"

"Again, sort of..." She paused too. "If I tell you something, will it stay between us?"

"Of course."

"And by that, I know you and Cody don't keep things from each other, but I don't want him to know about this just yet..."

Bailey was now confused. "Okay...I don't understand though."

Gertie nodded. "You see, I met this person last year at the big Halloween party. I never caught his name, but he was so much fun to hang out with and I could just be myself around him. Unfortunately, he had on a costume with a mask, so I didn't know what he really looked like in addition to not catching his name..."

Bailey let out a laugh. "Its kind of funny. The same thing happened to..." She paused and her eyes went wide. "Oh my gosh! Are you saying what I think you're saying?"

Gertie smiled. "Yeah, I believe I am. I was dressed as a cat that night..."

Bailey gasped. "You were Tapeworm's Catwoman!"

"I believe I was. And he was my Captain America. I didn't put two and two together until you left me those pictures. And when I saw he was Captain America, it all finally made sense to me then..."

"This is huge!"

Gertie paused. "Maybe. I don't know yet."

"What do you mean you don't know? You have to go tell him about this right now! He was looking for you after that night too!"

That caused her to blush again. "Really?"

Bailey nodded. "Absolutely!"

She smiled. "That's good to know..." She paused again. "But that was almost a year ago. I know we hung out together over the last semester. And I guess I understand now why we got along so well. But I didn't know how he would react to me being the cat. I didn't know if he could see me as more than a friend now. I might be stuck in the friend zone..."

"Oh...I see your point." Bailey stopped to think. "If it makes you feel any better, I know that I only saw Cody as a friend at first too. And I told you about his plan to win me over. It worked. I began seeing him in a different light and as more than a friend." She smiled. "And look at us now. I can't imagine my life without him."

Gertie smiled. "I know, and actually, I remembered you telling me about his six month plan. I kind of borrowed it and developed one of my own..."

"Oh yeah?" Bailey paused. "Was your make over part of it?"

"It was. And when I made my plan, it was early May. Approximately six months from then would be this Halloween." She smiled. "I think the Cat will be making another appearance at the Halloween party. What do you think?"

Bailey smiled. "I like it. Just let me know if there is anything I can do to help."

"Thanks. And that's the reason I don't want Cody to know just yet. Tapeworm is an old friend of his, and he might let it accidentally slip to him."

"I understand. This is your secret to keep, not mine. So, what is your plan until Halloween?"

Gertie shook her head. "I'm not sure yet. Most of it involved making sure he saw me in a different light. I don't have any specifics yet..."

Bailey grinned. "Don't worry. I think I may have a few idea you can try. And, I can always subtly get info out of Cody without him knowing what I'm doing..."

__Boston__

Zack and Maya had finally returned to the Boston Tipton after their day in New Haven. And after their talk on the way home, they thought they had finally reached a comfortable place for themselves going forward. But, that didn't stop Maya from pushing for a little more.

"So, since we're trying to become friends again, how about we head out tomorrow night and celebrate...as friends...the end of summer school and the soon to be beginning of the fall semester?"

Zack smiled. "Sounds like fun...but I can't."

"Why not?"

"Well, you remember how I told you that one of my classes next semester was a field study where I'll be able to get credit for basically just doing my job?"

She nodded. "I remember, but what does that have to do with tomorrow?"

"Well, to satisfy its requirements, I have to have to put in a ridiculous 400 hours..."

She frowned. "That makes no sense. The semester is only thirteen weeks. Four hundred hours would be working forty hours a week for ten of them without worrying about any other classes."

He laughed. "Tell me about it. But Moseby came up with a pretty good idea. Tomorrow morning, I'm grabbing a company car and heading out on the road. Every night from tomorrow until next Saturday, I'll be traveling to various London Inns and being an undercover observer so that the company can make sure each inn is doing things the right way. And since I'll technically be working the whole time, I can count 24 hours a day for 7 day and knock out almost 150 hours of it before the semester even starts."

Maya laughed. "That actually is a pretty good idea. Getting paid and school credit to eat, sleep, watch TV and swim in the pool. Where do I sign up?"

"And if I do that a few more times on the weekends, I'll only have to work about 15 hours a week. Plus, I did it once last semester right before finals, and it was great. I was away from the distractions of home and was able to get a lot of work done."

She just smiled. "I can see that. I have to say, its strange...in a very good way...seeing the new, mature Zack. I like it."

He shrugged. "Well...you know..."

"Yeah, I'm starting to. How about next Sunday night then? After a week on the road, you'll be ready to unwind a little and blow off some steam."

Zack paused to consider that. He did say he was willing to try to be friends again, so he nodded. "Sure. Why not?"

She grinned. "Not to be corny, but, Zack, I believe this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship..."

__New Haven__

The first couple of days back were pretty relaxing for the Yale four. Being sophomores now, they didn't have to deal with the hassles and constant meetings and seminars of freshman orientation. Instead, they only had a single registration meeting on the Tuesday night before classes started on Wednesday.

But while they didn't have anything they had to do, Cody and Bailey were still plenty busy. On Monday, they headed over to the financial office to make sure their tuition had been paid. After confirming that it had, they headed over to see their adviser. The previous semester, they had gotten to know their Molecular Biology professor pretty well, and it turned out that she was also the director of undergraduate biology studies. So that made her the perfect adviser. After waiting to see her, they finally were lead into her off and showed her their proposed schedule for the semester. After reviewing it and their transcripts from their freshmen years, she happily signed off on it. She thought it wasn't anything they couldn't handle, and told them they were well on their way to satisfy the requirements for not only a bachelor of science as well as the prerequisites for medical school.

She did suggest they stop by and see the Director of Undergraduate Studies for the Department of Ethics, Politics & Economics to make sure they were on pace to apply for it at the end of the semester. And again, after waiting to see her, they talked with her as well.

"Well, it looks like after this semester, you'll have all the prerequisites for our major. And based on your past work here at Yale, I honestly don't see any reasons why you two wouldn't be accepted in to the program. Of course, once you do get in, we'll have to discuss the courses for you to take after that and what you two would want your focus to be."

Bailey turned to Cody before looking back at the DUS. "Actually, we already know. We both want to head to medical school, and we've discussed how to combine EP&E with that goal. We both have different aspects of the field of bioethics that we think would be challenging to explore."

The DUS smiled. "Good for you then. Its always good to see people thinking ahead and trying to get their focus to synchronize with their other studies." She reached into a drawer and pulled out two packets. "Here are application packets. Just remember they are due by December 7. That's the last day of classes before reading week begins. If accepted, you'll be notified over semester break so you can begin thinking about scheduling classes."

Once their meeting was done, they headed over to the Commons to grab some lunch. And as they ate, they chatted.

"Well, we now have until tomorrow night at 9:00 to do nothing. Any ideas?"

Bailey paused to think. "I guess we could make a run to Sam's Club or Costco to get things we'll need for our rooms like snacks in bulk."

Cody nodded. "That's a good idea. And I guess you wanted to hold on to them, we could cash in Zack's Christmas gifts to us and have a night out on the town."

She laughed. "That's true. I'd almost forgot we had those."

He smiled. "Well, they are good for a year. We could hold off and save them for a night out before finals as a reward for ourselves."

The wheels in Bailey's mind began turning. "Maybe we should. Maybe all four of us can hit the store and have a night out together."

Cody shrugged. "Works for me."

"You know...and I know I've said it before, but it would be so nice if something were to happen between those two. Both are great people and deserve someone great too..."

Cody laughed. "Bails, I thought we agreed to no meddling. Besides, Tapeworm said with how good Gertie looks now, she could get someone a lot better than him..."

That caught Bailey's attention. "He really said that?"

"Yeah. I told him to go easy on himself." He grinned. "Besides, I reminded him that a guy like me could get someone like you to fall in love with him, anything is possible."

She smiled back. "Now its your turn to go easy on yourself. I happen to think you are completely wonderful, and my absolute perfect feller. I just want others to be as happy as us."

"So do I." He paused. "You remember what you were doing four years ago today?"

"Four years ago today?" She paused and grinned. "I believe I was seeing you in your Share Bear boxers as you hung out of a porthole..."

Cody laughed. "Yeah, that happened too. It was four years ago today that I met you for the first time...even if I did think you were a dude for the first few hours."

She teased him. "You complaining now that I'm not?"

He shook his head. "Never. No offense to Woody, but I really wish now I could have gotten you and he to switch rooms..."

"Think you could have kept my secret better?"

"Definitely..." He grinned. "Though, I'm sure I would have gotten a lot of strange looks when I said I was in love with my roommate..."

Bailey laughed. "Probably so..." She paused. "You know, there's something I've been meaning to tell you for a while now, Cody Bear. When you don't try so hard and just let it come naturally, you can be really funny..."

Cody perked up. "Yeah?"

"Definitely. Cody, I promise you I haven't faked a laugh in a long, long time. And I'm still so, so sorry I did laugh when that snake was trying to constrict you."

"Its okay. I guess I did try too hard sometimes just to impress you. I guess I had this beautiful girl who loved me, and I wanted to keep giving you reasons to."

She smiled. "Cody, I have plenty of reasons to keep loving you. Never worry about that. I just want you to be you. You are the one I've fallen head over heels in love with..."

"I feel the same way about you..." He grinned. "Did I ever tell you the one about the particle accelerator and the bag of M&Ms?"

Bailey shook her head. "Sweetie...you're trying too hard again..."

__To be Continued...__


	5. The Catch

_Episode 5_

__"The Catch"__

__I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did.__

__Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them.__

__Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves.__

__And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so...__

__New Haven__

The first week back on campus was a pretty easy one as most professors eased their students into the subject matters. And since Yale started almost a week earlier than it had the previous year, there were a couple of benefits for everyone that semester. For one, by starting an earlier, the school would be out of session for a fall break from October 24-26 (Wednesday through Friday) as well as still beinging closed a week for for Thanksgiving break. And in addition to that, unlike the previous year, everyone would be getting Labor Day off from school. With Labor day being the Monday after classes started back on Wednesday, another screwy schedule change occurred. On the Friday of the first short week of classes, regular classes were canceled for that day and students were instructed to go to their scheduled Monday classes instead. Being sophomores and having dealt with it for Martin Luther King, Jr. Day the spring semester before, Cody, Bailey, Gertie and Tapeworm were at least used to idea. But that didn't stop them from laughing at all of the new freshmen who showed up at the wrong classes.

As for their schedule, Cody and Bailey were extremely happy with the one they had planned out and had been approved. Their most challenging class of the semester would be CHEM 220, Organic Chemistry I, on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays from 9:00-9:50. And in addition to there regular discussion classes, they would have a discussion section on Thursday afternoons from 1:30-2:20. Accompanying Organic Chemistry I was its lab CHEM 222L on Mondays from 1:00-5:00. Their other class on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays was PHIL 175, Introduction to Ethics from 10:30-11:20. Monday and Wednesday would be their lecture classes while Friday would be their discussion section. They figured picking a discussion section at the same time on Friday would be easier to remember it as they could treat it as a regular class.

On Tuesdays and Thursdays, they began their mornings with STAT 105, Introduction to Stats for those planning on going into the medical professions. It would be from 9:00-10:15. Following it was MCDB 202, Genetics from 10:30-11:45. And accompanying Genetics was its lab, MCDB 203L, on Tuesdays from 1:30-5:30. So, while they had long, full days on Mondays and Tuesdays, their Wednesdays and Fridays were done by 11:20 giving them those whole afternoons to do homework. And while their Thursdays had three classes too, they weren't nearly as physically draining as Mondays and Tuesdays should be. All in all though, they felt their schedules were very manageable with four real classes and two labs.

On that Friday of the first week, it was almost 5:30 when Bailey got back to her room from class. And when she walked in, Gertie looked up at her in surprise.

"Are you just now getting back from class?"

Bailey laughed. "Yeah, thanks to Freaky Friday. Normally, our Organic Chem Lab is on Mondays, but we had it today instead."

"That sucks..."

"Actually, not really. We would have had it on Monday if not for the holiday, so we get an extra weekend to do our lab report. The professor said he canceled the regular labs on Wednesday and Thursday so every section will on the same pace after next week. So, it all works out in the end."

Gertie nodded. "I suppose that makes sense."

Bailey smiled. "And the good news for you is that I've had a week to slyly pick Cody's brain about Tapeworm..."

Gertie's eyes lit up. "Yeah? What did you find out?"

"Seems like your transformation didn't go unnoticed. Of course, you may have a small problem..."

She frowned. "What? Has he met someone else?"

"No, nothing like that. You just have to understand how their brains work and how guys think. Trust me, I've had years to learn how Cody does, so I'm experienced in knowing how to handle him. And one of the things you learn is that despite the tough exteriors they put on, guys are generally, underneath, pretty insecure. While they show bravado, when it comes to girls, they can be really scared and intimidated."

Gertie was confused. "I don't understand."

"Well, think of it like baseball. There are the major leagues, AAA, AA, A and rookie leagues. Guys deep down determine which level they feel they are in, and then judge whether or not a girl is in a league above, below or on par with them."

"Are you serious?"

Bailey nodded. "Unfortunately, I am. I know it doesn't make a lick of sense, but its true. In high school, Cody once told me that our friend Woody said I was way out of Cody's league. And while Cody didn't seem to argue it, I thought it was the silliest thing I'd ever heard. There are some guys who have no problem trying to reach above the level they think they are, but most refuse to chance it for various reasons. Trust me, I've spent a lot of time convincing Cody that I am in his league and not to worry about that silly notion. Now, back to your problem now. After your makeover, Tapeworm now thinks you are someone out of his league and could do a lot better than him. And I get the feeling he is one who won't chance it..."

Gertie sighed. "But I did this to try to get HIS attention!"

"I know. I told you their entire way of thinking is idiotic. It must be part of the Y chromosome though as I can't think of any other reason why two brilliant guys like Cody and Tapeworm would subscribe to such an idiotic concept."

"So, what do I do?"

Bailey smiled. "Didn't I just tell you from my personal experience that there were ways around it? We just have to find some way for him to see that you are just...well...you. Let me think..." She paused and grinned again. "I have it! Last semester, Cody and I were a coed ping pong team for Berkeley, and we had to spend a lot time together practicing. We need to find something that you and Tapeworm can team up to do together so you'll have to spend time together. Did you play any sports in high school?"

"Well, I was on the tennis team. And not to brag, but I was actually pretty good..."

Bailey grinned. "Perfect! We just have to find a way to get him to be your partner and try out for Berkeley's mixed doubles team. Until then, I think I have another idea for you two to be pushed together to spend time together up close and personal..."

"What's that?"

"We have Monday off from school. So, that means we have Sunday to do whatever we want. How about we talk the guys into heading up to Six Flags for the day. Its only about an hour up the interstate, and you can ride the rides with him..." She grinned again. "...and hold on to him for dear life..."

Gertie laughed. "I like it..."

__Boston__

On Sunday afternoon, Zack returned back to his suite after a week of being on the road. And he was so glad to be home and not sleeping in a motel room every night. Then he looked around, remembered where he was living and just laughed at the irony. Deciding to relax, he just sat back on the couch to rest for a second when he heard a knock at his door.

He sighed. "No rest for the weary, huh?"

Zack pulled himself up off the couch to answer the door figuring it was probably just his Mom checking on him. But when he answered the door, he found a smiling Maya standing there.

"Maya?"

"Oh good. You're back! I was hoping you were."

He nodded. "Yeah, I actually just got home not more than ten minutes ago."

"How was your week?"

Zack shrugged. "Well, it was actually pretty boring." He grinned. "You know...getting paid and school credit for sleeping in, ordering room service, and lounging around pools all week was rough." He laughed. "I think I need a break to recover..."

Maya shook her head and laughed. "Now that's the Zack I remember. So, you still up for us hanging out and starting the rebuilding of our friendship today?"

He paused. "I don't know. Truth be told, I actually am really worn out. Driving back from Albany is more exhausting than you would think it is."

She just grinned. "What if I said I something I know you couldn't say no to?"

"And what would that be exactly?"

Maya reached into her purse to grab something. "These. Two tickets to the Yankees and Red Sox tonight that my Dad gave me. ESPN Sunday Night Baseball. Your team versus my team. Two rivals fighting it our for the division crown as the season winds down."

Zack had to admit to himself that he was now interested. "Where are the seats?"

She grinned. "On top of the green monster."

He just nodded and laughed. " Oh yeah, I'm in."

She laughed too. "I figured you might." She checked her watch. "Its almost 3:30 now, and the game doesn't start until 8:00. Seems my dorm is actually only a couple of blocks from Fenway, we can stop by there on the way so I can change into my Yankee gear."

"Tell you what. Why don't I meet you at your dorm? That'll give me a chance to grab a shower to clean up..."

Maya just looked at him funny. "You're want to grab a shower to clean up? Wow...you really have changed!"

He rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah...Cody was shocked when I said the same thing this summer..."

She smiled. "Anyways, that works for me." She pulled out a piece of paper and pen and scribbled something down. "This is my room number and my cell phone number..." She paused. "...Its the same one as before, but I didn't know if you still had it. Just meet me there around six."

Zack nodded. "Sounds good to me. We can grab some food before the game too."

Again, she just looked at him funny. "Grab food before the game? We're going to a baseball game, Zack. Why would we want to get something beforehand when we can get hot dogs and other junk food at the game?"

Zack had to laugh. "Good point." And to himself, he smiled remembering it was things like that about Maya that had drawn him towards her in the beginning. "Alright, I'll see you around six."

__Somewhere Along I-91 in Northern Connecticut__

Since the park didn't open till 10:30 that morning, none of the four could think of any reason why they shouldn't be there by 10:00 so they could be among the first ones in the park when the gate opened. Twelve hours later, they also closed the park down and were among the last ones to leave. And instead of being full of energy like they had been that morning, all four of them were flat out exhausted. As they walked back to the car, Bailey turned to Cody.

"You sure you're not too tired to drive, Sweetie?" She yawned. "Cause if you are, I'll do it..."

He just smiled and shook his head. "I'm okay, Sweetheart. Normally, I avoid caffeine after 9:30, but I may have to make an exception just this once when we stop for gas down the road."

"You sure?"

"I'm sure. Sounds like you're tired though. Why don't you ladies take the back seat where you can fall asleep if you want. I'm sure Tapeworm won't mind riding shotgun with me. We can even catch the end of the Sox and Yankees game on the radio."

Bailey was about to nod her agreement when her eyes went open wide. "I'll ride shotgun with you, Cody Bear! In fact, I want to!"

He just looked at her in surprise. "Really? You do?"

She nodded. "Of course." She smiled. "You've been trying to convert me to being a Red Sox fan. What better way to do that than share a Red Sox-Yankee game on the radio with me?"

Tapeworm spoke. "She actually does make a good point, Cody. As one of the Nation, it is your responsibility to do whatever it takes to convert her."

Gertie laughed. "You guys are just too much with your baseball loyalty..."

Tapeworm turned to Gertie and teased her. "And you weren't with your Ravens? Besides, there is no need to get upset just because your Orioles suck..."

Later on, in the car, after stopping for gas and a caffeine boost, the four of them were on their way back to New Haven. And while Cody and Bailey were in the front listening to the game, Gertie turned over to Tapeworm.

"Thanks for putting up with me today and riding everything with me."

He shrugged and smiled. "Not a problem." He laughed. "Though, I'm pretty sure I'm going to have bruises on my arms from where you grabbed them on some of the roller coasters."

Gertie blushed. "I am so sorry about that..."

"Don't worry about it. I'm actually hoping I have a big bruise. Cody and I were talking, and we have a little side bet on which one of us will have the bigger bruise. Seems Bailey was gripping his arm as tightly as you were mine."

"What's the bet?"

"Well, we've decided to alternate weeks on who keeps our common room clean. The loser of the bet has to do it straight for an entire month."

She nodded and tried to think of someway to keep their conversation going. "So, how are you two liking your new room as opposed to the one in LW?"

He laughed. "A thousand times better. Its bigger. We have our own bedrooms. And even though its an ivy league school, upperclassmen keep our common bathroom a whole lot cleaner. Last year, I think with most everyone being away from home for the first time, they gave no thoughts of picking up after themselves or bothering to keep things sanitary. I still use shower shoes now, but now its more out of habit than necessity."

She shook her head. "What is wrong with some people?"

"I don't know." He grinned. "Maybe that's why I'm a mathematics and computer science major instead of a psychology major?"

She laughed. "I know the feeling. I'm the same way. I'm architecture. We both deal with things that are for the most part absolutes. Sure I want any buildings I design to be aesthetically pleasing, but they will be worthless if they aren't structurally sound or have a design that makes sense."

"I would say so." He laughed too. "One day if I'm able to get a job in my field, my first concern about the building I work in will be that it not collapse with me inside of it."

"I don't blame you. Its like I always say, no matter what something looks like on the outside, its what's on the inside that is most important."

"I couldn't agree more. Whether it be buildings or cars or even people, its what's on the inside that counts." He grinned. "Which is actually a good thing for a guy like me...I hope."

"Don't worry. It is. You're a good guy, Dennis."

He just looked at her. "Dennis? Not even my mother calls me that..."

Gertie smiled and her eyes shone in the dark of the backseat. "Well, someday, everyone will call you Dennis. I might as well be the first to start calling you that on a regular basis."

He just nodded. For the life of him, there was still something about Gertie that he couldn't quite put his finger on. While she had become a good friend, there was still a mystery there hidden behind those magical eyes.

__Boston__

About eleven o'clock that night, Maya and Zack joined almost 40,000 people in making their way out of Fenway Park. And with the huge smile on Maya's face and the scowl on Zack's, it should be no surprise as to what the outcome of the game had been. Zack was still shaking his head in disbelief.

"I still don't believe what I just saw..."

Maya laughed. "Well, just think. What we saw live tonight will probably be all over ESPN tomorrow and the rest of the week. It may even win an ESPY for play of the year..."

Zack groaned. "I sure hope not. Seeing Curtis Granderson jump up and take away the game winning home run is not something I care to see over and over again..."

"Oh come on. It was more than that, and you know it! He went over the wall, and when he came back up, he not only had caught the ball but some fan's hot dog in his mouth. We'll be seeing that clip for years!"

"Great..." He sighed. "At least the NFL comes back next weekend..."

She teased him. "So, you can watch your Pats lose in the Super Bowl again?"

"At least we made it there! They did sweep the Jets!"

She grinned. "Yeah, they did, but I'm a Giants fan, remember? And the Giants did beat the Pats last year...in Foxboro no less."

Zack grumbled. "Yeah, yeah. Well, all your win tonight did was get you within three games of us with a month left. We're still in first place."

"For now. But after the Red Sox collapsed last year, I'm not worried..." She smiled. "I'm just teasing you, Zack. Sports was always one of the big things we had in common. We may root for rival teams, but half the fun is giving the other a little hell from time to time..."

"I guess..."

"Oh come on. Admit it, you had fun tonight until that last play."

Zack paused. "Alright, I did. I guess when we were on the boat, we didn't get a chance to see much live sports. We had to rely on the TV in the Aqua Lounge or on our laptops. I remember once when Tut busted me for wearing my headphones under a hooded sweatshirt just to listen to a game."

Maya laughed. "You remember that one night we got up early because while the game started at 4 PM on a Sunday in New York, it was 4 AM Monday morning where we were?

He laughed too. "How could I forget? We were both up at 3:30 in the morning, yet we were still late getting to class that morning. I think that about blew Cody's mind..."

"I remember." She paused. "That was when he was still miserable over Bailey. Did you know until he got back together with her that I had never seen him smile? And once they got back together, I never saw him without one..."

"Oh, I remember. Guess who was the one he vented about everything to? Me..."

"I can see that...I mean, you two are brothers after all." She paused again. "Has that been flipped now? Do you vent to him now?"

He nodded. "Sort of. Which is kind of weird that I go to him for advice about women. I never would have saw that coming when we were younger..."

Maya's interest was piqued. "What has he told you?"

"Well, he told me to do what makes me happy. To follow my heart. And he told me not to let my hurt or my ego or my pride cloud my vision..."

She smiled to herself. "Sounds like good advice."

"Yeah, I think so too. Did you know that he actually told me once that he and Bailey breaking up for a little while turned out to be a good thing for them in disguise? He says the both are more aware and appreciative of what they have and know not to let stupid things get in the way."

"I can definitely see that. It reminds me of a couple of old sayings. First is you don't know exactly what you've got until its gone. The other is whatever doesn't kill you will only make you stronger. And I could see myself how much stronger they are now."

"True..." Zack laughed. "But they aren't any less annoying with how they are with each other. And their pet names for each other have just gotten worse..."

"Maybe, but they are much better place now. A place I hope we can get to someday..."

Zack turned to look at her. "Maya..."

Maya smiled. "I know, I know. We have a long, long way to go to get there if we ever do, but I can still hope. And for now, I'm enjoying us getting to know each other and become friends again. Tonight was a lot of fun. I look forward to us doing more stuff like this in the future."

Zack paused. "Yeah, I guess I am too. It reminded me that you and I can have a good time together."

She smiled again. "Good. Since we start back to classes on Tuesday, how about we do something that's not so much fun tomorrow – hit the school bookstore?"

He laughed. "Yeah, I guess I probably should do that at some point."

"Sounds like a plan. Well, walk a...friend...back to her dorm?"

"Sure. Why not?"

And when they got back to Maya's dorm room, she unlocked the door and turned back to him. "Thanks for a fun evening, Zack. I'll see you tomorrow." With that, she leaned up and kissed his cheek before heading back into her room.

Zack just stood in the hallway holding his cheek as his heart began racing again. "Oh boy..."

__New Haven__

Close to midnight, Cody parked the car in their parking garage before turning to Bailey. Gently, he shook her shoulder to wake her up.

"Bails..."

She opened her eyes with a start. "I'm awake!"

He smiled. "Sure you were. We're back on campus now."

Bailey stretched. "I must have fallen asleep after the Red Sox exciting victory. It was the perfect way to cap off the day." She turned to the back seat and saw it empty. "Where are Gertie and Tapeworm?"

"I dropped them off at the dorm. And Bails, the Red Sox lost in the bottom of the ninth on a weird play. You were asleep before we got to Hartford..."

She paused and had a sheepish look on her face. "Oh..."

"Bails, for the past week, you've been acting a little strange. Is there something going on you want to tell me about?"

__To be Continued...__


	6. The Other Woman

_Episode 6_

__"The Other Woman"__

__I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did.__

__Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them.__

__Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves.__

__And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so...__

__New Haven__

Bailey just looked at Cody with apprehension and trepidation. She was sure she had done a good job of digging up useful information to help out Gertie without Cody catching on. But by the look that Cody was giving her, it looked like it hadn't been good enough. Silently, she cursed herself for forgetting about his detective skills and began to try to think of a good excuse.

"Cody...I can explain..."

He smiled. "And I'm pretty sure I know why you've been acting a little strange too."

She looked at him in surprise. Were his skills really that good? "You do?"

"I think so. Unless I've missed my guess, you're still harboring hope of trying to get something going between Tapeworm and Gertie. Am I right?"

Bailey just looked at him again. "That's what you think?"

Cody nodded. "Well, yeah. I mean, you did suggest a day at the amusement park knowing those two would be thrown together all day. Look. I'm not complaining. I enjoyed getting to spend the day with you right next to me. But when you asked if Tapeworm played tennis and then suggested he and Gertie try out for the intramurals team, I put two and two together..."

She had to hold back a laugh. While he thought he had put two and two together, he still hadn't gotten four yet. But Bailey decided to play along with Cody so she could keep Gertie's role in this matter in the dark for a little while longer. So, she shrugged. "I just think there might be some potential there."

"And there might me, but we have to remember a few things, Sweetie. One, not only are they our friends, but they're also our roommates. We don't want to do anything to cause any problems for our group."

"I don't want that either, Cody."

"Besides, we don't even know if those two have even really thought about the other in that way. If they have, so be it. The best thing to do is just let nature take its own course."

Bailey smiled. "Maybe you're right. But I seem to remember a certain blonde haired young man who didn't let nature take its course and did everything he could to win me over."

He laughed. "Well, that was different. That was me, and I would have done anything to be with you."

"I see. Kind of a double standard, don't you think?"

"Maybe. But I'm just trying to look out for our friends. I don't want to see either one of them get hurt."

She nodded. "Alright, well, _I_ promise that _I_ won't do anything to further push those two together. I'll leave it up to them and nature if anything is going to happen."

He smiled. "Good. Now, its close to midnight. You want to catch the bus back to the dorm, or would you rather take a walk through campus and maybe get some ice cream along the way?"

"Definitely a walk. Its a beautiful night out." She grinned. "And since tomorrow is not a school day, you can stay with me tonight."

Cody grinned too. "Now that sounds like a plan."

"To me too..."

"Thankfully, we don't have that much homework to do tomorrow."

"I know. Mostly just our organic lab report. I can already tell that class is going to be a challenge."

"Nothing we can't handle."

Both got out of the car, and once they locked it up, they began the walk back.

"Oh, and Bails?"

"Yeah, Cody?"

Cody grinned. "After you fell asleep on me, You can now watch the entire Red Sox game with me tomorrow on TV..."

Bailey just shook her head and sighed. "I know..."

__Boston__

On Tuesday, it was time for Boston University to begin its new semester. Maya figured that while her main goal in moving to Boston was to get Zack back, it wouldn't be a bad idea to think about her future career as well. So, after perusing the BU degrees that were offered, she made a decision with regards to her professional life. While Maya would have to take mostly preliminary classes to knock out prerequisites at first, she had decided that with her love of sports, athletic training/physical therapy was what interested her. And she was more glad than ever that she had got her introductory chemistry classes over and done with in the summer. Still, she wasn't too thrilled to have 8:00 classes everyday, but as a freshman, she had to take the classes when they were offered and where she could fit them in. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, she had a biology class from 8:00-9:30 with its in course lab on Mondays from 2:00-4:00. On Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, she had a general introduction to psychology class from 8:00-9:15 with its discussion section on Thursdays from 10:00-11:00. Also on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, she had her writing seminar from 10-11:00. Then, for introductory classes in her new chosen major, she had Introduction to the Health and Rehabilitation Professions on Tuesdays from 10:00-11:30 and Freshman Year Experience on Fridays from 11:30-12:30. Her final class was a physical education class that she actually had to take, and she figured with everything going on in her life at the time, a course in stress management sounded perfect. It met on Wednesdays from 2:00-4:00. She wasn't really happy with her schedule, but she thought it was doable. Plus, it would have one perk she would soon discover.

Similarly, Zack wasn't too thrilled with his schedule initially either, but he soon saw the benefits of it. He would be taking five classes, but one was his field experience class. The other four were SHA HF 120, Fundamentals of Food Service Management on Fridays from 2:00-5:00 in the afternoon. Seems 2:00-5:00 classes were popular in the department as he had his SHA HF 260, Marketing Principals of the Hospitality Industry on Wednesday and SHA HF 270, Lodging Operations and Technology on Mondays at the same time. Then on Tuesdays and Thursdays, he had MA113, Elemental Statistics from 2:00-3:15 with a discussion section on Fridays from 11:30-12:30. Zack didn't think much of his schedule until Moseby pointed out the beauty of it. On Mondays through Thursdays, he could work from 8:30-12:30 and get his sixteen hours in for the week and have Fridays off from work. And once that was brought to his attention. Zack really liked that idea.

On Friday afternoon, Zack had finished his statistics discussion section and decided to grab some lunch on campus before heading off to his last class of the week. And as he was sitting there taking a break to eat, he sensed someone sitting down across from him. Looking up, he saw Maya smiling at him, and he couldn't help but smile back.

"Hey..."

She kept smiling. "Hey yourself. This is the first time I've seen you on campus this week. I was beginning to wonder if you were still a student here."

He laughed. "Oh, I've been around. Its just I normally leave work everyday at 12:30, and grab some fast food to go to eat on the subway so I make sure I get over here in time for my 2:00 classes. But Fridays are my off day, and I had an hour and a half to waste before my last class, so here I am..."

"I know what you mean. This week has been busy for me too. I'm finally done for the week and in serious need of a nap. How do your classes look so far."

Zack shrugged. "So far, so good. I don't particularly like having a class last for three hours at time, but what can I do about it? It means on three days a week, I have somewhere I have to be from 8:30-5:00, so its like I'm working full time anyways..."

Maya laughed. "Oh...poor baby. Everyday by 8:30, I will already have been in class for a half hour. So, no sympathy here from me."

"Yeah, yeah. So, how are your classes so far?"

She shrugged too. "So far, so good. My biology class doesn't look like too much fun, so it might be a pain."

"Just do what I did with economics last year - call Cody and Bailey for help. They're biology majors...I think. Whatever it is, they're both pre-med, so they should be able to answer any questions you have."

"We'll see. So far, I'm really thankful for my Stress Management class. I've learned some really good breathing exercises on the first day, so I can already tell I'm going to find it useful."

Zack frowned. "Why are you taking it?"

"Well, I had to take a Health/PE class as part of Athletic Training. It was one of the few still open that happened to fit my schedule."

Zack just looked at her. "You had to take a PE class? You mean you could have taken something like basketball or something and not because you wanted to?" He shook his head. "I'm in the wrong major!"

Maya laughed. "You're also a year ahead of me, so quit your whining..." She paused. "You know, looking back now, I really wish I had taken more AP classes in high school. I didn't realize then how beneficial they could be. Most of the classes now I could have probably tested out of if I had done well enough..."

He just nodded. "Preach on, Sister. I knew I should have listened to Cody when he tried to talk me into them..."

She smiled. "What's the old saying? You live, you learn." She paused. "You make mistakes so you can learn from them and never repeat them again."

Zack couldn't miss the double meaning she had. "Very true." He checked his watch. "Its almost twenty till 2:00..." He sighed. "...I better get moving if I'm going to make it over to my last class. I miss Beacon Hill where everything was right there next to each other. Why does this place have to be so spread out?"

Maya laughed again. "Guess we're both getting used to a real college campus. That's why the boat was so nice because all of the classrooms were right there together all on one deck."

"Tell me about it. Well, it was nice running into you for lunch, Maya..."

She smiled. "Yeah, it was. Maybe we can make this a weekly thing? You know...grab lunch on Friday afternoons and complain about our weeks..."

Zack laughed. "Sure. Sounds good to me."

__New Haven__

On Sunday night, Cody and Tapeworm had their first nightly gym session of the new week, and as they finished about 12:30, both were feeling exhausted as they sat down to catch their breathes.

"I think we're getting better."

Cody turned to his friend as he gasped for air. "You think so?"

"Of course. When we first started, you had trouble benching just the bar once. After two weeks, you can now bench the bar plus two five pound weights almost six times."

Cody had to smile. "That's true. Unfortunately, I don't think that rate of improvement will remain constant over time."

Tapeworm laughed. "Probably not. My goal is to be able to bench my own body weight. Beyond that, I have no illusions of having a six pack. I just want to avoid getting a pony keg..."

Cody laughed too. "I'll agree with that."

"I guess tomorrow night is legs then."

"Yeah, we might want to ease up on those. Last Tuesday, my calves were killing me. Bailey noticed, and I had to tell her it was a charlie horse."

"When are you going to tell her what we've been doing?"

Cody paused. "When I have more definitive results..."

Tapeworm just shrugged. "Well, I think I have the energy to head back up to her room. You ready?"

"You go ahead. The Powerades I bought earlier today probably aren't cold yet. Fortunately, those new zero calorie ones don't give me heart burn. I'm going to stop by the vending machines and hope they have them."

"Cool. See you back upstairs. A hot shower sounds so good right now."

Tapeworm went one way while Cody headed off towards the vending machines. He lucked out when he saw they did have the ones he could drink. And he had just bought one and taken his first chug when he heard a blood curdling scream. Immediately, he looked around and tried to find where it came from. Checking his immediate environment, he found a study room with a girl pulling on her hair and mumbling to herself.

Cody knocked on the door. "I hate to bother you, but did that scream I just heard come from in here?"

She looked up at him and signed. "Sorry about that..."

"Don't worry about it. Just wanted to make sure someone wasn't being attacked or something..."

"Not literally, but this physics homework is killing me!"

"Which physics is it?"

She sighed again. "200."

Cody walked over and nodded. "My girlfriend and I took it last year, and it was pretty rough. What seems the problem exactly?"

She pointed at her textbook and notebook. "For some reason, I can't get the right answer to these problems."

Cody checked the book and then her work. He smiled when he saw the problem. "You're using the coefficient of friction incorrectly. When you transposed the formula, you forgot to invert it."

She looked down at her work and groaned as she hung her head. "Oh geez...I feel like an idiot!"

He laughed. "Don't worry about it. That class can be a real pain. Bailey and I were happy to make it out of it alive."

She looked up and smiled. "Well, I appreciate the help. I'm Bridget Samuelson. Freshman Chemical Engineering major. Thank you."

Cody shook her hand. "Cody Martin. Sophomore Biology and hopefully soon to be Ethics, Politics & Economics. Nice to meet you."

"Well, if not for you, I'd be here all night doing homework and probably not figuring out what I was doing wrong."

"No problem." He paused. "Okay, I have to ask. You have sort of an accident. Is it Swedish?"

Bridget smiled. "Yeah, I was born there and moved with my family to the States when I was sixteen."

Cody nodded. "I was born in Seattle, but my ancestors came over from Sweden a long, long time ago. They were the founders of Martinsgrav."

Her eyes went wide. "No way! I'm from Larsgrav, two hamlets over from Martinsgrav." She laughed. "Small world."

He laughed too. "I guess so. Well, I just got done working out, so I probably don't smell too good right now. I'll let you get back to your studies."

She smiled again. "Thank you again so much."

And with that, Cody left, and unbeknownst to him, he was being checked out as he walked away. And while he was being unknowingly appraised, his mind began to whirl as well. Bailey had said she wouldn't try to play matchmaker for their friends anymore, but maybe he could. He thought Bridget might be just the kind of girl Tapeworm might like.

_Boston_

The rest of the week flew by in Boston as well. Between work and classes, everyone was incredibly busy. But on Friday, like they had the previous week, Zack and Maya met up for lunch.

"So, another week in the bag, huh?"

"For you. Remember, I still have one more class left today..."

"Oh yeah. So are the rest of them going?"

Zack sighed. "Just great. I've already been assigned projects in my other two classes this week. I may have to talk Moseby into sending me out on another weekend so I get some work done of them."

"Awww..."

"Yeah, yeah. Someone of us work sixteen hours a week in addition to going to school."

"Hey, I've been working a little bit too. Someone asked me to be a temporary resident adviser on my floor for a few weeks while the girl who normally does it is out of the country on a school related trip."

He rolled his eyes. "Gee. You have to make sure people didn't get too wild or out of control."

Maya glared at him. "I've had to do more than that!"

"Like what exactly?"

"Ummm...well, at least one night a week, I have to sit the front desk and check ID cards."

Zack just shook his head. "So, you spend all night sitting there, doing your homework and getting paid for it. Sounds rough."

"Isn't that what you were planning on doing on your weekend trip?"

He paused. "Oh yeah..."

Maya laughed. "Want to make any more cracks about my temporary job now?"

"No, I'm good."

"So, what are your big plans for tonight?"

"I don't know. I am thinking a nap when I get home. Beyond that, nothing has really presented itself yet."

Maya decided to present something to him then. "How about we do something then? You can get your nap, and then we can go catch a late showing of a movie or something. We can even grab some food before or after."

Zack shrugged. "Sure. Why not? Why don't I give you a call once I get home, and we'll figure out something from there."

"Sounds good to me. I..." She was about to say something when someone else sat down down at their table.

"I was starting to wonder if I'd ever run into you on campus, Zack..."

He paused and smiled. "Hey, Amanda. Amanda, this is Maya. Maya, this Amanda."

Both girls just looked at each other sizing the other up.

_New Haven_

About that same time in New Haven, Cody and Bailey were having lunch on Science Hill. They still had some time until the Organic Chemistry discussion group, and were just taking it easy before their last class of the week.

"So, what do you want to do this weekend?"

Bailey paused. "I don't know. Maybe we can check out one of the new exhibits at a museum here on campus. But since our first organic test is next Friday, we probably should start studying for it as soon as possible."

Cody nodded. "Sounds good to me. Fortunately, we don't have that much homework to do on Sunday."

She smiled. "I know. This schedule has really worked out well for us. We have Sunday afternoons to do both of our lab reports plus our Organic Chemistry homework.

"And our stats homework and genetics readings on the Tuesday and Thursday afternoons after they are assigned. That leaves our philosophy and organic readings for us to do whenever we catch free time sometime else."

Bailey laughed. "I don't want to brag, but I doubt anyone else on campus has a better schedule and routine down than we do."

Cody laughed too. "Not unless they've developed a device to pause time..."

Both just looked at each other before shaking her heads and laughing. "Nah, we don't have time to work on one of those..."

"We don't, but I'll ask Arwin if he's got one when we go home for Thanksgiving. He's always inventing weird things like that..."

"You know, I've wondered about us alternating between Kettlecorn and Boston for Thanksgivings and Christmases, but then I remembered something."

"What's that?"

She grinned. "If we didn't go back to Boston for Thanksgiving, everyone there would probably starve that day..."

Cody smiled. "I'm sure London would have it catered."

"Probably, but it is easier to go to Boston for Thanksgiving. We can drive there, and we'd have more time over Christmas break to be in Kettlecorn."

"Very true." He teased her. "I've already placed my order for a catcher's mask and shin guards for when we head back this year."

She shook her head. "Not necessary. I intend to make sure that this year is a peaceful and relaxing time."

"I'm all for that..."

Cody was about to say something else when he felt two arms go around his neck and hug him. He looked up to see Bridget standing there smiling at him.

"Hey..."

"I happened to see you sitting here, and I just wanted to thank you again for what you did for me the other night. You are a total life saver, Cody. I owe you a big one!" She leaned in to kiss his cheek.

Cody swallowed realizing he was in a very perilous situation. "Ummm...Not a problem. This is my gir..."

Bridget cut him off. "Sorry I have to run, but I have to get to my physics lab. I hope to see you around soon, Cody!"

And just as soon as she arrived, she was gone. Cody just shook his head. But we he turned back around to look at Bailey, he could see her giving him one of those looks that no guy ever wants to see.

_To be Continued..._


	7. Awkward Situations

_Episode 7_

__"Awkward Situations"__

__I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did.__

__Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them.__

__Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves.__

__And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so...__

__New Haven__

Cody just looked at Bailey and the unmistakable look she was giving him. And immediately, he knew he was in trouble. So he knew he had to explain to her that it wasn't what it looked like, and he knew he needed to do it fast. So, he let out a nervous laugh. "Bails, there is a perfectly logical and reasonable explanation for what you just saw..."

Bailey kept staring at him promising herself she would hear him out before saying anything. After all, she had learned her lesson about flying off the handle and not giving him a chance to explain. "I'm listening..."

Cody paused trying to figure out what to say exactly. While he didn't want to lie to her, he didn't want to tell her why he was downstairs in the first place. Even though he was pretty she would understand, he wasn't ready to let her in on his surprise just yet. So, he figured if he just left out the part about him working out, his nose wouldn't crinkle and give him away. Cody just looked Bailey right in the eyes. "Sunday night after you had headed back up to your room to go to bed, I got thirsty and wanted something to drink. But the drinks I had bought that day hadn't had a chance to get cold yet, so I headed downstairs to the vending machines. And almost as soon as I got my drink, I heard a blood curdling scream. Being a good citizen, I wanted to make sure no one was in any trouble or being attacked, so I went to check it out. And when I did, I found Bridget...her name is Bridget...in a private study room having a minor meltdown. Turns out she is a chemical engineering major and was doing her PHYS 200 homework. Well, you remember how much of a pain that class was and how it caused us to want to pull our hair out too. So, trying to be nice, I offered to see if I could find out what she was doing wrong. And when, I did, she was grateful." He paused. "And by what you just say, I guess she still is. I swear to you, Bails...that's all that happened."

Bailey paused too to consider what he just said. She knew Cody well enough to know he was telling her the truth. And she didn't even have to see his nose not crinkle to know that. So, she nodded. "Well, I guess I can understand that."

Cody smiled in relief. "Thank you. And you want to hear something funny? I did speak with her for a few minutes, and you'll never guess what I found out..."

"What's that?"

"She was actually born in Sweden and moved to the States just a few years ago. And get this...she's from a town only a couple over from Martinsgrav! Talk about a small world, huh?"

Bailey just looked at him again. "Oh really? You two must have talked for quite a while then..."

Cody realized he should have kept his big mouth shut while he was ahead. So, immediately, he shook his head and decided to explain his thinking. "Not really, but I did notice the accent and was curious. Anyways, while I was talking to her, an idea did begin to form in my mind."

"And just what would that be exactly?"

"Well, I was thinking. You told me you weren't trying to play matchmaker between Gertie and Tapeworm anymore because we were worried about how it would effect our little group. Well, so I figured I might give it a shot with someone with someone else."

Bailey frowned at hearing that. "What are you talking about, Cody?"

Cody shrugged. "I thought I'd introduce Tapeworm to Bridget. I thought maybe they might get along. You know, see if something happens. She's chemical engineering and he's computer science. I thought that science might be something they would have in common."

Her eyes went wide realizing what Cody had in mind. And before she knew it, she had blurted out. "But Cody, you can't do that!"

He frowned this time. "Why not? If it didn't work out, its not like it would cause any problems with our little group. What would be the problem, Bails?"

Bailey began panicking as she tried to think of a good reason to give him. "Because...because...because you don't know that much about her? What if she's a serial killer or something?"

Cody just laughed. "A serial killer? Are you serious?"

"Okay, maybe nothing that bad, but maybe she's very high maintenance? Maybe they wouldn't have anything in common after all? Maybe she would just try to use him to get someone else jealous? It could be anything, Cody. Like I said, you don't know anything about her..."

He paused to consider that. "You really think so?"

Bailey smiled to herself thinking she had avoided a potential disaster. "I'm just saying you just met her once. There's no way to know if they would even hit it off or not..."

Cody paused and nodded. "I guess you're right. I guess I was just looking out for Tapeworm hoping to help him out some."

Bailey smiled at him. "And I can understand that. He's your friend, and you just want to see him happy..."

"Yeah, I was..." He shook his head and laughed. "I still can't get over the look on your face though. Bails, you know you are the one and only girl I notice like that. You know you're the only one for me."

"I know. I guess I was just caught off guard, that's all..." She paused. Even though she did trust Cody, she readily admitted to herself that she hadn't liked seeing that girl throw her arms around him at all. After all, Cody was hers, and she was very protective and possessive of him. And as she thought more about it, she recalled the look on Bridget's face and her saying that she hoped to see Cody around. Well, Bailey was determined to make sure that didn't happen. But before she could say something, Cody spoke up again.

"Well, you should know you have nothing to worry about, Sweetie. But I think you're right. Maybe I should get to know Bridget better to see if she and Tapeworm would even be a good match together..."

Bailey suddenly lost her appetite. At that moment, she wanted to tell Cody the whole truth so that he would forget his silly idea, but she had promised Gertie that she wouldn't. Bailey was getting a bad feeling. It looked like this Bridget girl could be a problem for both her and Gertie.

__Boston__

Maya and Amanda continued looking at each other and sizing up the other.

Amanda finally spoke, but her tone wasn't a pleasant one. "So...you're Maya. I've heard so much about you."

Maya just returned her stare and tone of voice. "And you're Amanda...I've heard a lot about you as well."

Zack quickly realized that there was an immediate drop in the temperature as things were beginning to get frigid at their table. He decided to diffuse the situation as best as he could. "So...Amanda, how have your classes been going? I haven't seen you around campus yet. Probably because I work in the mornings and all my classes are in the afternoon on the west end of campus."

Amanda turned to look at him, and her expression softened. "Not bad so far. Though, I do miss having classes with you. It was always fun sitting in the back and making jokes about things."

Zack let out a little laugh. "Yeah, that was fun. I don't have anyone in my classes now that I can do that with."

"So, what were you two up to? I didn't interrupt anything, did I?"

Maya bit her tongue. "No, not at all..."

Zack spoke up. "Actually, we were just talking about hanging out later and catching a movie...as friends." He paused as an idea came to mind. "Why don't you join us?"

Maya resisted the urge to glare at Zack and instead, plastered a smile on her face. "Yeah, why don't you? Zack's told me how good of a friend you've been to him. I'd like to get to know you better myself..."

Amanda paused and forced a smile herself. "Sure...Sounds like fun. Zack, just give me a call when you get done for the day and let me know what the plan is."

Zack checked his cell phone and sighed. "Speaking of which, if I don't get moving, I'll be late for my last class. And its one of those old school professors who will lock the door right at 2:00 and not let you in if you're late." He turned to Maya and laughed. "Good thing for us that Tut was never like that, huh?"

Maya laughed tpp. "Yeah, that would have been bad if she was. We would have been locked out over half the time."

"If not more. Alright, I'm off to class. I'll call you both later, and we'll figure something out."

And with that, Zack grabbed his backpack, and headed out. And if he was honest with himself, if was glad to be away from such an awkward situation. Of course, that left Maya and Amanda sitting there all by themselves. Maya decided to try to be nice since this Amanda girl did seem to be friends with Zack.

"So, I hear your ex showed to surprise you too..."

"Yeah, he did. And Zack was there to help me out when he did. So, I'm going to help protect him from you hurting him again."

Maya sighed. "I have no intentions of hurting him again. I know what I did was wrong then, but I'm trying to make up for it now. Despite what you might think, I actually do love Zack. All I want is a chance to get back what I stupidly let get away from me..."

"I guess we'll just have to see about that, huh?"

"So, you're telling me you've never made a mistake before?"

Amanda laughed. "No, I'm not saying that at all. But I do have the unique advantage - or disadvantage depending on how you want to look at it - of being in the same boat as Zack."

"Well, I was literally on the same boat as Zack. Look, I don't know your ex, why he did what he did or what he is thinking now. All I know is me and my situation. I wish I could undo what I did, but I can't. So, I have to try to make up for it. And I plan on doing that. I even moved here to Boston to try to get Zack back."

"No offense, but why should he trust you again?"

Maya sighed. "Right now, he has no reason to. And while that hurts, I know its completely deserved. So, I'm going to do everything I can to regain that trust. I'll never violate it ever again. Until then, I'm going to do my best to make myself a part of Zack's life again. For now, all Zack wants to do is work on us being friends again. I want more, but I'm willing to wait as long as necessary for him to be in the same place."

"And if he never does?"

"Then that's the price I'll pay. But right now, I still have a chance, and I'm not going to blow it."

Amanda paused. "We'll see, but I will keeping my eyes on you. You hurt him again, and you'll have to deal with me!"

__New Haven__

That afternoon, when Bailey got back to her room, she found Gertie sitting on the futon watching TV. She closed the door behind her, and looked at her roommate.

"Gertie, I think we both have a big problem..."

Gertie looked up at Bailey. "What do you mean?"

Bailey sat down next to her. "Okay, it started the night we got back from Six Flags. Cody thought I was trying to play matchmaker between you and Tapeworm, and he called me on it..."

"You didn't tell him the truth, did you?"

Bailey shook her head. "No, I covered your role in it, and I thought that was the end of it. Turns out, I was wrong..." She proceeded to tell Gertie about what had happened at lunch earlier. "So, I have Cody thinking about trying to introduce this girl to Tapeworm while I think she has her eyes focused on my feller..."

Gertie sighed. "This isn't good...This isn't good at all."

"I know. I trust Cody, so on my end, I think I'm okay. But that doesn't mean I'm not going to do nothing. And I can't tell him not to try hook Tapeworm up with her without him wanting to know why..."

Gertie shook her head. "I should have known something like this would happen..."

"Its your call about how you want to handle this. But, if we let Cody in on your secret, I know he'll nip his plan in the bud. Just give me the nod, and I'll have him up here."

Gertie paused to think. "You think he would keep it to himself and not tell Tapeworm?"

Bailey nodded. "I think so. I know he only wants what's best for his friend. I trust Cody with my life, but this is your plan. Its up to you to decide what you want to do..."

"Great..." Gertie sighed. "What was this girl like?"

Bailey shook her head. "Think Swedish Bikini Team. Tall, blonde, attractive."

"I can't compete with that!"

Bailey smiled. "Sure you can! Gertie, you're great, and you and Tapeworm already get along great. I've known him for a year now, and he's a smart and good guy. Don't worry, he's not an idiot who is only focused on what a girl looks like."

She sighed again. "I know. But the Halloween party is only six weeks away. I'm too close to putting my plan into motion for this to happen now and potentially ruin it..."

"So, what do you want to do?"

Gertie paused to think. "Go get Cody. I'm not willing to risk a monkey wrench or blonde bikini model destroying my plan."

_Cody and Tapeworm's Room_

The boys were lounging in their common room too taking it easy.

"Have we really only been back in school for three weeks?"

Cody nodded. "Yeah, two and a half to be exact..."

Tapeworm sighed. "I need a break already."

"Well, five more weeks until our fall recess..."

"Great. You know every professor and their mother will be scheduling exams on that Monday and Tuesday before it."

Cody laughed. "Oh, some of ours already have. Bailey and I have our first organic exam next week. Our second one is that Monday after fall break. Plus, we get our take home midterm in philosophy that Friday before, and its due by 5:30 on the Tuesday before break."

Tapeworm just turned to him. "Are you serious? That's borderline cruel! I mean...the big Halloween party is that Saturday."

"We know. That's why we're going to stay here over break. We figure that will give us all day Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday to study for it. We'll take Saturday off to have some fun but back to the grind on Sunday."

Tapeworm paused. "Think this year's party will be anything like last year's?"

"I don't know. All I do know is that I've already started getting ideas for our costumes this year. Since the theme is more...grotesque and macabre, I may lean that way." He smiled. "Why? Think you'll run into your cat again?"

"I can only hope..."

Cody was about to say something to him when there was a knock at their door. He got up to answer it, and he was surprised to see who was standing there smiling at him.

"Bridget?"

"Good. I got the right room number. I would have been embarrassed if this hadn't been yours."

Cody laughed. "What can I do for you?"

"Well, a bunch of us were about to head out to the courtyard to play some ultimate frisbee. I figured I'd see if you wanted to join us..."

Cody paused and smiled as a plan formed in his mind. "Sure. Why not? You mind if my roommate joins us?"

She grinned. "The more the merrier. See you downstairs in 10 minutes."

He nodded, and Cody headed back inside and turned to Tapeworm. "Put on some shorts and sneakers. We're going to go play ultimate frisbee."

"Huh?"

"There is someone I want you to meet. Plus, they say everyone in college has to play it once before they graduate."

Tapeworm just looked at him. "I didn't realize you were that big into college traditions. I mean...you are the person who refused to consider streaking before THE GAME last year, aren't you?"

Cody rolled his eyes. "Come on. Just do it!"

Tapeworm shook his head, but five minutes later, they were headed out. And not more than five minutes after they headed out, Bailey came down the stairs and knocked on their door. After knocking several times and getting no response, she frowned.

"Come on, Cody...where are you?"

__Boston__

By seven o'clock, Zack had had a chance to get home, grab a quick nap, and get ready to head back out that night. He was supposed to meet the girls at the theater close to BU by 9:00, so he had plenty of time to take it easy and maybe play a little of his video game. But a knock at his door interrupted that. And he was surprised when he opened the door to find Amanda standing there.

"Amanda? What are you doing here? Wasn't I supposed to meet you and Maya in a couple of hours?"

She walked in to the suite past him. "Yeah, you were, but I wanted to have time to talk to you alone first."

He shrugged. "Okay...what's up?"

"Its about that Maya girl. I want to know what's going between the two of you."

"Ummm..." He paused. "Well, she's made it clear that she wants me back. And I've told her that I just don't know. I told her we could try become friends again and see where it goes from there."

"Are you sure that's what you want? I don't want to see you get hurt again."

Zack smiled. "I appreciate that, but I know what I'm doing. I think she's really serious. Plus..."

"Plus what?"

He paused. "I don't know. I thought I had gotten over her and moved on with my life, but I don't think that I truly had. The Sunday before Labor Day, we went to the Sox and Yankees game, and we had a great time. And at the end of the night, she kissed my cheek before saying goodbye. I could feel butterflies in my stomach and my pulse racing. So, I think there are still some feelings there for her. I don't want to close the door on them until I know exactly what they are."

Amanda paused. "Are you sure about this?"

He nodded. "Yeah. And I have my brother and Bailey to thank for that. They told me when they were broken up, they let their anger, hurt and pride get in the way of how they really felt. They told me it was natural for me to want to do that but not to give into it. Don't do anything rashly that I would regret later. So, I'm trying to keep an open mind."

She shrugged. "Alright, if you say so. I just wanted to make sure. You're a good friend of mine, and I didn't want to see you get hurt again."

"I appreciate that. How are things going with you and Jake nowadays? Any thaw between the two of you?"

Amanda sighed. "Not really. Unlike you, I'm having trouble keeping an open mind. I'll give him credit though...he is persistent."

"Well, the only one who can tell you what to do is yourself. Try listening to your heart while blocking out your head. It might make things easier on you."

"I'll do that." She sighed. "Well, I guess we have over an hour before we have to leave here."

He grinned. "I was just about to play some video games. Want to join me?"

She smiled too. "Sure, sounds like fun."

As they were playing and beat a stage together, Amanda turned to Zack. "I do have to ask you one thing though..."

"What's that?"

She laughed. "What were you thinking dating a Yankees fan?"

__New Haven__

Cody and Tapeworm returned to their room from from playing ultimate frisbee laughing about how bad they had sucked at it.

"Dude...we were terrible!"

Cody shrugged. "Well...yeah. But in our defense, that was the first time we had ever played it before. I sucked at playing football until my friend Kirby taught me how to play by using physics. I'm sure we could do the same thing with ultimate frisbee." He paused as he checked his shirt. "But I think I will want to avoid getting grass stains like this in the future..."

"Well, you might want to add that tall blonde to your list of things to avoid as well. She looks like she could be trouble."

Cody just looked at him funny. "What are you talking about? You mean Bridget? She's the one I wanted you to meet."

Tapeworm laughed. "Yeah, whatever. She only had eyes for you, Dude."

"But that doesn't make any sense. She knows I have a girlfriend. I made that quite clear to her. Besides, I wouldn't trade Bailey for anyone or anything..."

"Well, they do say its the ones in stable relationships that attract other women. It shows them that if another woman was willing to date you, there must be something to you..."

Cody shook his head and laughed. "If that's what she's thinking, she's definitely barking up the wrong tree."

"I'm glad you remember that..." Tapeworm laughed. "...because I've definitely not forgotten what Bailey has said she could do with her bare hands. I don't want to see you get into any trouble with her."

"Bailey knows I'm totally committed to her. She has nothing to worry about. I think you're wrong about Bridget though, but you should try to get to know her better."

"You think so?"

Cody grinned. "I know so...you know, at least until you meet your Catwoman again."

When they got to back to their room, they found a note on their door. Cody pulled it off and read it aloud.

_'Cody, come up to my room as soon as you get this note! We need to talk ASAP! Bailey'_

Tapeworm laughed. "Uh oh. Maybe I was wrong. Maybe you are already in trouble..."

__To be Continued...__

__**AN: Let it be said that I predicted a Patriots win over the Ravens in Season One. Anyways, for those Zack and Maya fans, we now have a Giants and Patriots Super Bowl. That would be a good source for a story for those two.**


	8. A Schemer is Reborn

_Episode 8_

_"A Schemer is Reborn"_

__I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did.__

__Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them.__

__Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves.__

__And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so...__

__New Haven__

Cody looked at the note in his hand again and tried to think of why Bailey would need to see him so urgently for. And then the bit of advice that his Dad had once told him crept into his mind. "Son, when a woman sees we need to talk, she means she needs to talk and tell you all the ways you've been screwing up lately." But for the life of him, Cody couldn't think of anything he had done wrong recently. He paused, well nothing he hadn't already told Bailey about and explained that it hadn't been bad at all. So, shrugging, Cody decided to head up to Bailey's room.

And for his part, Tapeworm just shook his head. While he would like to have a girlfriend, it was situations like this that he was slightly glad he was still a bachelor. And that got him thinking about what Cody had told him earlier. That Bridget girl seemed nice enough he thought, but he just didn't see anything happening there. Besides, if he was honest with himself, he was already kind of torn. While he still held out hope that the upcoming Halloween bash would bring the reappearance of his mysterious Catwoman, he had to acknowledge to himself that he had found himself thinking of Gertie more and more lately. But he just shook that thought out of his mind. He told himself that there was no sense worrying about something that had no chance of happening anywhere outside of his imagination.

Meanwhile, Cody had headed up the flight of stairs, walked to Bailey's door and knocked on it. And immediately, the door swung open and Bailey was standing there giving him a look he was trying to decipher.

"Where were you?"

Cody shrugged. "Tapeworm and I got invited out to play some ultimate frisbee..." He grinned figuring it might lighten the mood. "Turns out, we both sucked at it..." Seeing that Bailey was still not smiling, he paused. "Alright...what's up?"

"I need you to scrap any and all plans for trying to set up Tapeworm with that Bridget girl immediately!"

"Why?" He studied her again. "Bails, what's going on?"

She sighed. "Come inside, we have something to tell you..."

And when Cody walked inside, he could see Gertie sitting on their futon with a worried expression on her face. "Is everything okay around here?"

"Not exactly..." Bailey turned to Gertie. "I think you need to tell Cody everything from the beginning."

And Gertie did. She told him about seeing the pictures Bailey left and figuring out that Captain America was Tapeworm. Cody was still a little confused about what she was talking about until Gertie revealed that she had been the mysterious cat the previous Halloween. And to say Cody was shocked was an understatement.

"Whoa! Whoa! Whoa! That was you?"

Gertie nodded. "Yeah, that was me. I didn't think I'd ever figure out who was the man behind the mask and shield was, but I did. And when I did, I found out it was Tapeworm. I was planning on revealing to him who I was before we left to go to the party in a few weeks..."

"Wow..." He paused, sat down and shook his head. "Wait a minute! Why don't you just tell him the truth now and see what happens?"

She sighed. "Well, right now, I can't...and its kind of your fault..."

Cody just looked at her. "Okay, this I have to hear. How is this my fault?"

"I kind of borrowed your idea of a sixth month plan. The culmination of it is supposed to be at the Mortician's Ball next month. Cody, I need your help now..."

Cody couldn't help but laugh and turned to Bailey. "This is twice now that someone has tried to use my plan. Maybe I should write a book about it?"

Bailey rolled her eyes. "Cody, focus!"

"Oh yeah." He stopped to think. "Well, as someone who has done one before, you have to be ready to change your plan when complications pop up suddenly..."

Bailey frowned. "When did you ever have to do that?"

Cody smiled. "Hmmm...lets see. Getting you tickets to that concert and Moose showing up top the list..."

"Oh..."

He turned back to Gertie. "And sometimes, things don't work despite your best efforts and thought out plans."

Bailey spoke up again. "When do those happen to you?"

"Galapagos Gertie and that stupid dating questionnaire..."

Bailey nodded. "Oh yeah..."

He turned to Gertie again. "But sometimes, when you think you're down to your last chips, that's when things will suddenly take a turn in your favor..."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I admit that on a few occasions, I got frustrated. Once, I almost gave up, but my brother Zack convinced me to keep trying..." He paused and turned to Bailey. "Before you ask, the international dateline" Cody turned back to Gertie. "Anyways, there is a moment when you know your goal is within your reach. For me, it was when Bailey told me that if I could get her tickets to a Hannah Montana concert that she would love me forever. Wild horses weren't going to stop me, but despite doing everything I could think of to get her those tickets, I failed..."

Bailey smiled. "I remember that. I was so touched that he would go through everything he did just to do that for me. That's when I knew he was the feller for me..."

Gertie nodded. "I appreciate the advice, but what I really need is for you NOT to introduce Tapeworm to that Bridget girl..."

Cody swallowed and began hemming and hawing. "Ummm...I wish you would have told me all of this earlier. She was the one who invited us to play ultimate frisbee..."

Bailey sighed. "Cody!"

"Well, in my defense, you told me that I didn't know who she was. I thought maybe he could get to know her on his own and make up his own mind..."

Gertie sighed and slumped back into the futon. "Great...I can't compete with her...which is ironic because he is the one who thinks I'm out of his league."

Cody was confused. "But how did you know that..." He paused and turned to give Bailey a look. "Bails!"

She let out a nervous laugh. "Yeah, I told her. I was trying to secretly pump you for information. I'm sorry. I know I shouldn't have, but I was trying to help both of our friends..."

He just shook his head. "So much for not keeping secrets from each other..." And immediately, he felt a pang of guilt knowing he was keeping the secret of his and Tapeworm's nightly activities from her.

Gertie spoke up. "Don't blame her. I swore her to secrecy. I was afraid if you knew, you might let it slip to Dennis before I was ready to tell him."

Cody turning to Bailey and smiled. "Alright, I can understand what you did. I know you had a good reason for it." He hoped she would remember that later. But he felt the opportunity to have a little fun though and smiled. "But no complaints now when I pick out our Halloween costumes."

Bailey was relieved he wasn't more upset. "You won't get any from me, I promise..."

"As for Tapeworm, I think I have an idea of what we need to do now. Take it from someone who's been there before. I think we're going to need to modify your plan a little bit though. Here's what I have in mind..."

__Boston__

After leaving the theater after watching a mediocre comedy, Zack, Maya and Amanda stopped off for a quick bite to eat at a 24/7 restaurant nearby. And by the time were done eating and ready to call it a night, it was getting late. And since all three of them lived in different directions, they parted ways as Amanda headed off towards her subway station. And as the station Zack had to use to catch the green line was near Maya's dorm, he walked that way with her. While they walked, they had a chance to talk themselves.

"So, your birthday is in a couple of weeks. Any big plans for it yet?"

Zack paused. "Yeah, I guess it is, isn't it? And no, nothing planned for it yet. And as I recall, your birthday is a few days before mine."

Maya smiled. "You remembered."

"Well, its kind of hard to forget with it being so close to mine. Anything big planned for yours?"

She shook her head. "Not really. I think my parents are going to come up that weekend to take me out to dinner, but other that that, nothing yet. Maybe you and I should do something to celebrate them together?"

"You think we should?"

"Sure. It will be the last weekend of the regular season, and it looks like the Sox and Yankees will come down to the end. Maybe I can make some phone calls to get us tickets to the last game of the season at Fenway?"

Zack laughed. "You sure about that? One, it will almost be impossible to get tickets. And two, if it does come down to that game, one of us is not going to have a very happy birthday..."

Maya laughed too. "I think we'll be okay. Who ever loses the game will still be one of the two American League wild cards. So, neither one of their seasons will be over with a loss..."

"That's true." He paused as a thought popped into his mind. "Have you been back to New York since you came up to Boston this summer?"

She shook her head. "Not yet. Probably won't get back until Christmas break. I was going to go home for Thanksgiving, but that's not going to work out. For one, we only get three days off. For another, my parents will be in Dallas that week for something dealing with my Dad's job. Anyways, I think it best for me to stick around here and do some studying. I could use all the extra time I can with my Biology and Math classes..."

"That sucks." He paused again to consider doing something but in the end, he just did it. "You know, if you are going to be in Boston over break, you're more than welcome to join us at the hotel on Thursday..."

Maya was pleasantly surprised to hear that. "Are you serious?"

"Of course." He laughed. "I understand if you wouldn't be comfortable eating Cody's cooking, but he really is quite good. Last year, he and Bailey cooked up a feast."

She smiled. "No, I have no problems with that. I was just a little surprised that you actually asked me. But if you're sure, I'd love to be there."

"I'm sure. Its no problem either way."

"Is there anything I can do or to bring or anything I can do to help?"

"Nah. Just wear loose fitting clothing. Cody always makes way too much food, and everyone tends to fall asleep after gorging themselves. And there will be all kinds of people there you know. Cody, Bailey, Mom, Arwin, London, Moseby, Tut and few more people I've told you about like Esteban and his wife, Francesca. We usually eat after the Cowboys game. So be there by then or show up a little after noon if you want to spend the afternoon watching football."

Maya smiled again. "Definitely sounds like a plan to me. I'll be there early...in loose clothing." She paused and laughed. "Looks like I was wrong with what I told your Mom the first time I met her. I'm a year late, but I'll actually be there for Thanksgiving this year..."

__New Haven__

The next several weeks flew by in New Haven. The week after Cody was let in on Gertie's secret, he and Bailey were busy studying for their first organic exam. And by studying, that mean they spent every single free moment they had focused on it. By the time it had come and gone, both were exhausted and in need of catching up on their sleep. Fortunately, their discussion session had been canceled on that Friday, so when they got back to the dorms from their philosophy class, they just crashed.

But there would be no rest as their organic test was just the beginning of their first round of exam fun. They had a stats exam on the next Thursday, a genetics exam the following Tuesday and finally, a small five page reactionary paper due for their philosophy class on that Friday. Despite all that was going on, Bailey offered to throw Cody another birthday party, but he said they should just have dinner among the four of them once things calmed down. To Cody, turning nineteen wasn't that big of a milestone birthday like turning 18 had been the year before or turning 20 or 21 in the subsequent years would be. But, he definitely didn't turn down the big kisses she gave him throughout the course of the day of his actual birthday.

By this time, it was well into October, and the main things on most people's minds were the upcoming fall break and the Homecoming/Halloween weekend after it. The first year, Cody and Bailey had only gone to the Harvard game, but this year they decided to hit the homecoming game against Penn on the Saturday of the Halloween party. And they decided since the Harvard game was going to be held on the Saturday before Thanksgiving in Cambridge that year, they would get tickets to it and head back to Boston after their last classes on that Friday.

Finally, the week of fall break arrived, and on that Tuesday, they were returning from turning in their take home philosophy midterms.

"We now have three days off to do nothing..."

"Except study for organic chemistry..." Bailey paused. "Ummm...Cody, I know I said I wouldn't complain about our Halloween costumes this year, but I have to say I'm getting really curious."

"You know what they say about curiosity and cats. You don't want to jinx Gertie, do you?" Cody grinned and laughed. "Don't worry. I've already called and reserved them for us. I'll take you with me to pick them up on Friday afternoon because I have the feeling we're both going to need a few things to complete the full effect..."

Bailey just looked at him nervously. "I'm not sure I like the sound of that..."

He laughed again. "I'm giving you more warning than you gave me...And I promise it won't be anything worse than you making me wear my ti...compression pants."

"That's true I guess. And I know you would never pick anything that would embarrass me."

He reached down to take her hand. "You have that right..." He smiled and kissed her hand. "...Cara Mia."

Bailey just looked at Cody and shook her head as she began laughing. "I think I know what you have in mind now..." She smiled. "And I think its sounds perfect..."

"Good. Speaking of the Halloween party, is everything else set?"

Bailey nodded. "I think so. I was wondering. Is Zack planning on coming down again this year? If so, we'd need to fill him in so he didn't accidentally ruin it."

Cody shook his head. "Nah. Seems BU is having their homecoming weekend on Saturday too. He's going to stay up in Boston and check it out."

She laughed. "Is he afraid of a repeat of last year?"

"Who knows, but you're right - our plan will be easier with as few wild cards as possible."

"Agreed." She paused as there was something she had to ask. "Speaking of wild cards, what about Bridget?"

Cody shrugged. "No clue. I haven't seen or talked to her since you guys filled me in on what's going on. Once you did, I scrapped all plans to get Bridget and Tapeworm to spend time together. To be honest, I had actually forgot about her until you mentioned her name."

Bailey just looked at him. "You had forgot about her?"

"Yeah." He laughed. "You want to hear something funny? Tapeworm thought she might have had her sights set on me."

Bailey wasn't laughing though. "Cody, I think she does..."

He frowned. "Really? I never noticed that..."

"In case you've forgot, this wouldn't be the first time you haven't noticed other girls flirting with you..."

"I'm never going to live down that Home Ec fiasco, am I?" He smiled and squeezed her hand. "Well, its still true. Bails, you are the only woman I notice. And you are still my favorite girl..."

She smiled at him. "Awww..." She leaned in and kissed him. "I feel the same way about you, Sweetie."

Cody leaned in and kissed her again. "I'm noticing you a lot right now..."

Bailey laughed. "I can tell, but before we get too distracted, lets finish up what we were talking about. Once we have, we can get as distracted as we want. Now, is Tapeworm still planning on heading home for a few days tonight?"

"Yeah. He said he'd be back before the party on Saturday night. Does Gertie know what she has to do?"

"Yeah. She's been dropping hints for the past couple of weeks that she is heading home today for a few days to see her family. Instead, she is going to leave campus temporarily, and we're supposed to call her once Tapeworm leaves so she can come back."

Cody nodded. "Good. And then on Saturday night, she's going to hide out in her room while the three of us leave to head off to the party. Then about thirty minutes later, she'll show up dressed as the cat again."

"Correct. Is Tapeworm still planning on going as a pirate?"

"Yeah, he's already shown me his costume. It has a hat, a patch and a beard so he can disguise who he is."

Bailey grinned. "But we'll know so we can give the signal to Gertie that its him..."

Cody laughed. "Exactly!" He rubbed his hands together. "I love it when a plan comes together!"

"Cody, you know I love you, but you really need to stop watching that movie so much..."

__Boston__

That Saturday was a joyous occasion on Boston University's campus. In 1997, the school had dropped football as a varsity sport in hopes of meeting the requirements of Title IX. But in the fifteen years since then, there had been a movement to bring it back. And 2012-13 school year would be the first season of having a football team again. Naturally, they were beyond terrible, so it didn't matter that they weren't eligible for postseason play. But that weekend, there was a lot of buzz over the homecoming game against their old rivals, the University of Maine. While the rivalry was bigger in ice hockey, the schools in general did not like each other especially considering the way the entire state of Maine felt about the state of Massachusetts. Not so lovingly, they referred to them as 'Massholes'.

And seeing how Zack was willing to rebuild his friendship slowly with Maya, Amanda took a page out his book and tried to see if she could even salvage a friendship with her ex, Jake. So, they had slowly begun hanging out again. And as it turned out, she had gotten four tickets to the game from her father and invited Zack and Maya to join them. Maya readily accepted while Zack just shrugged and said why not. He loved football, but he had a pretty good idea that what they were going to see would be painful.

As they walked towards the stadium, Maya laughed. "It'll be nice for us to actually be rooting for the same team for once..."

Zack just grinned. "I just hope you're in a better mood than a few weeks ago. I could have swore I saw steam coming from your ears as we left the last Yankees/Sox game."

"Well, I had a right to! I could have played better defense than our new shortstop did! Why we got rid of Jeter, I'll never know..."

"I do remember giving you a few days to cool off after the Yankees got knocked out in their one game playoff with the Rays..."

Maya shook her head. "I don't walk to talk about it. Don't rub it in now, and I'll promise not to rub it in when the Sox finally get beat."

He grinned. "Who says they will?"

"The Texas Rangers." She sighed. "At least I hope they will..."

"Come on. We have a really bad football team to cheer for..." He paused and teased her. "So, I'll finally get to see what its like to be a Giants fan..."

After the game, in which the Terriers got beaten like the dogs their mascots were, Zack and Maya walked out of the stadium with Amanda and Jake. And as they did, Amanda took the chance to tease Zack.

"So, were you too scared to heading back to Yale for Halloween again the year?"

Zack sighed. "Nope. I just had no desire to have a repeat of last year. Thanks to that night, Cody now has permanent blackmail on me."

Maya stopped him. "Okay, I've heard about this night at Yale a few times now. What exactly happened there?"

He shook his head. "It was me trying to blow off some steam and ended up doing something stupid. I went with them to this traditional Halloween party there called the Mortician's Ball. And I ended up playing this game with cups and ping pong balls. If the other team threw a ball into one of my cups, I had to drink what was in it. I was actually pretty good at it, but after a while, what was in the cups got the best of me. Turns out it was some pretty strong stuff. I remember my partner throwing up and me laughing. The next thing I remember, I was back at Cody's dorm and I was throwing up myself on his shoes. He practically carried me back to his room where I immediately passed out on his bed. The worst part was the next morning. I didn't feel well at all. I think I stopped at every rest area between New Haven and Boston in case I needed to throw up again."

Maya was laughing so hard she was crying. "Please tell me there are pictures of you like that..."

He sighed again. "Oh, there are. Cody and Bailey have them. The blackmail they have is to threaten to post them on facebook..."

"I need to ask them at Thanksgiving to see them!"

"If they do, just don't let anyone else see them like Mom or..."

"Zack?"

Everyone turned and saw Marion and Emma Moseby standing there. Zack frowned "Moseby? What are you doing here?"

Moseby grinned. "I told you. I'm an alum of BU."

Emma spoke up too. "And I'm from Vermont. We don't like Maine either..." And that's when both of them noticed who was with Zack. "Maya?"

Maya smiled. "Hello Mr. Moseby...Miss Tut...Mrs. Moseby."

Both were surprised to see her. "I thought you were supposed to be in Africa?"

She shook her head. "No, I came back after a year." She smiled at Zack. "There was something more important for me here than there. Now, I'm a student at BU too and have been since this summer..."

Moseby just gave Zack a look, and he shrugged back at him.

"I see. Well, it is Halloween weekend. Just remember you are all too old to pull any more pranks."

Zack laughed. "Moseby, our senior prank on you was the last one I pulled. You've gotten me twice since then."

Moseby smiled. "True. Still, I'll never forget all of us getting you with the Ghost of Suite 613. That was an all time classic..."

Emma turned to him. "What was that?"

"Back at the hotel, Cody had this plan to get back at Zack for his years of pranks on him and enlisted Maddie's, London's, Arwin's, Esteban's and my help to pull it off." He laughed. "And it worked perfectly!"

"Huh...I would never have suspected Cody as a schemer too."

"Oh, he was never as bad as Zack was, but he was a hooligan too in his own way. Kind of like the Diet Coke of hooligans. But, he outgrew that. I can't see him pulling off a big scheme like that nowadays."

__New Haven__

Cody and Tapeworm were both in their rooms finishing getting ready for the Morticians ball. Tapeworm checked himself out in the mirror and liked what he saw, and he went to check on Cody. And when he did, he saw Cody fitting the wig on to his head.

"I thought you were going to use temporary black hair dye?"

Cody shook his head. "We thought about it, but Bailey and both decided wigs would be a lot easier. Plus, there would be no chance of us accidentally doing something to damage our real hair."

"Probably a good idea..."

Cody added the final touch which was a pencil mustache. He turned to Tapeworm. "So, how do I look?"

Tapeworm laughed. "Very nice...Gomez..."

Cody grinned as he checked himself out in the mirror one final time. His gray pinstripes suite was a little gaudy, but it worked for his costume. His bow tie was perfect, and the cigar in his mouth just finished off his look. "I think so too. Alright Captain Jack, lets go get Bailey and get out of here..."

And when they got to Bailey's room, she opened the door, and both of the guys just applauded her when they saw her. She laughed. "So, I take it you both like my costume?"

She had on a black Gothic dress that was tightly form fitting. She had on a long black wig, crimson lips with matching fake fingernails, fake black eyebrows, and her make up was done so that she appeared to be very pale.

"You take my breathe away, Morticia..."

Bailey smiled at Cody. "Merci, Mon Cher..."

Cody just grinned at her, grabbed her arm and began kissing up it. "I love it when you speak French!"

Tapeworm just shook his head and laughed. "Come on you two, lets go. I knew I should have gone as Uncle Fester..."

Bailey reached down to lock her door. And as she had her keys in the lock, she rattled them to give Gertie the signal that they were leaving. Twenty minutes later, they arrived at the ball and began looking around and taking everything in. And unbeknownst to Tapeworm, as soon as they got there, Cody pressed the send button on his cell phone in his pocket, and a text message was sent to Gertie letting her know they had arrived.

About a half hour later, the three of them were sipping on bottles of water talking about some of the costumes people had chosen to wear. It was Tapeworm's turn to find the next costume for them to discuss and ridicule when his eyes went wide and his mouth fell open in shock.

"Its her!"

Cody and Bailey turned to see where he was looking, and both held back smiles when they saw Gertie walk in dressed in her cat costume.

Cody patted his friend on the back. "What are you waiting for, Man? Go get her..."

__To be Continued...__


	9. Tricks and Treats

_Episode 9_

__"Tricks and Treats"__

__I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did.__

__Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them.__

__Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves.__

__And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so...__

__New Haven__

Tapeworm scrounged up all the courage he could and walked directly towards his mysterious Catwoman. As he traversed the distance between them, he kept rubbing his palms on his pant legs hoping to keep them from getting too sweaty. And while he thought the walk over was taking forever, he suddenly wished it had been a longer one as he found himself right beside her. Tapeworm had no idea of what he was going to say to her, so he just said the first thing that popped into his head.

"Hey..."

He just saw her turn and begin to look look him up and down. "Hey yourself..."

Briefly, Gertie looked behind him to see Cody and Bailey standing there, both giving her the thumbs up sign. So, she smiled to herself knowing for sure that it was indeed Tapeworm under the pirate costume.

Tapeworm swallowed. "I don't know if you remember me or not, but you and I talked to each for a long time at this same party last year. I was dressed as..."

"Captain America..."

He sighed with relief. "Good. You do remember me then..."

She smiled. "Of course I do. Luckily for me, I don't have my cousin here that I have to babysit this year."

Tapeworm laughed. "And I don't have my friend here who I'll have to keep an eye on either." He paused. "Look, I don't want to seem too forward, but I had a great time talking to you last year. I was hoping to learn more about you, but you left so quickly that I never got your name. And with you in a costume, I didn't even know what you really looked liked to try to find you on campus..."

"So, what are you saying?"

"I'm saying I'd like us to be formally introduced. I'll even go first. My name is..."

Gertie cut him off quickly. "Don't! At least not yet." She smiled. "Lets just see how tonight goes first and then decide if we want to exchange names then..."

That caught Tapeworm completely off guard, but he quickly recovered. "Ummm...Sure I guess."

She smiled again. "How about we go get something to drink? Non-alcoholic of course. I have no desire to be in the same condition as my cousin was last year..."

He laughed. "Completely understood." He extended his arm. "Shall we?"

"We shall." And with that, they headed off towards the refreshment table.

From across the room, Cody and Bailey had been watching everything unfold right in front of them.

"So far, so good..."

Bailey nodded. "I think so too." She turned to him. "How do you think he's going to take it when he finds that its really Gertie under the mask?"

Cody paused and smiled. "You know. For some reason, I think he'll be really happy about it...and excited...and confused with a million questions he'll want to ask. And I have a feeling it will be a while before I finally get some sleep tonight as I have to answer some of them."

She laughed. "I don't know about all of that. Remember, we have an organic chemistry test in less than 36 hours..."

"After the past few days, how could I forget. But tonight, we're taking the night off. And as I recall, last year, I had the privilege of dancing with Maid Marian. She's not here tonight, but I'd be honored to dance with you, Mrs. Addams..."

Bailey smiled. "I'd be the one that would be honored, Mr. Addams. Shall we?"

"We shall..."

Bailey grabbed his hand and lead him off towards the dance floor. And when they got there, a slow song began playing just as they had found an open space.

Cody smiled. "The DJ must like me. Our first dance tonight will require me to hold you tightly in my arms..."

"Yeah, you do..."

He wrapped his arms around her waist as she wrapped hers around his neck. But Bailey noticed something was different.

"Cody Bear?"

"Yes, Boo Boo?"

"For some reason, your shoulders feel..." She paused trying to figure it out. "...I don't know. More firmer I'd say..."

Cody just grinned. "Well, you still feel the same to me...perfect."

She giggled at that. "Thank you, Sweetie. But I'm serious. You're still cuddly, but something is different."

He shrugged. "Maybe its just the suit I have on. Probably too much starch in it...or maybe its the built in shoulder pads"

"Maybe that's it." She shook her head. "Anyways, I'm not one to complain. I could stay like this all night..."

"So could I..."

Bailey smiled at him and was about to say something when she notice Cody's nose was twitching. Her eyes went wide. "Cody! Did you you just lie to me?"

Cody just looked at her in confusion trying to figure out what she was talking about when it dawned on him. "Oh no, Bails! I wasn't lying. Its this mustache I'm wearing. It tickles and its causing my nose to twitch." He grinned. "Trust me when I say there is nowhere else I want to be..."

"Well, I guess I can see that..." She grinned too and teased him. "So, is that why you're going to grow a mustache when we're older? So you can tell me fibs and blame it on the mustache?"

This time, Cody was about to say something when he felt a tap on his shoulder. He turned to see a girl with long blonde braided pigtails dressed like Heidi. Immediately, he recognized who it was – Bridget. But before he could say anything, she spoke up.

"Mind if I cut in?"

__Boston__

After hanging around campus for a little while after the football game, everyone quickly realized that the school's planned homecoming festivities looked incredibly lame. So, that left them looking for something else to do that evening. And as it was too late for them to find decent costumes, that ruled out any of the numerous costume parties around town. That's when Amanda had a suggestion. Her father's company was a secondary sponsor for this large Halloween amusement center just across the state line in New Hampshire, and she could get them in all for for free. There would be both a haunted house and haunted forest as well as a midway with all kinds of carnival games and attractions. Figuring it was better than the alternative, they all found themselves in New Hampshire as night fell.

Maya just shook her head. "In the past two years, I've been around the world on a cruise ship and in the jungles of Africa...but I may be more apprehensive of New Hampshire than anywhere else..."

Zack laughed. "Could be worse. Just be glad we aren't in Maine. If we were and told them we were from Boston, we could actually be in real danger."

"I'll take your word on that. Well, what do you want to do first? Hit the midway or check out one of the haunted areas?"

Amanda spoke up. "I say we hit the haunted house. The haunted forest will be much better once its darker. More spookier that way..."

So, that's what they did. And Zack couldn't help but think how lame the haunted house was too. All of the usual cast of characters made an appearance including Jason, Freddy and Michael Myers. It was almost predictable when they would make their appearances. But, he had to admit...every time Maya jumped, screamed and latched on to his arm, he didn't mind it so much.

As they were walking along the midway afterwards, they were checking out some of the various carnival games. Amanda and Jake were off at one game where Jake was determined to win her a stuffed animal. And while Maya ran to the bathroom, Zack was off by himself doing some exploring when he heard a voice.

"Interested in having your future seen in my crystal ball?"

He looked up to see an old woman dressed as a gypsy. Zack just shook his head. "No thanks, I've already been told about my future from a magic mirror. Besides, and no offense, but I've had my friend London pretend to be a palm reader before. So, I know how easy it is to fake this kind of stuff..."

The gypsy shrugged. "Fair enough. Guess you don't want to know what the future lies for you and your ex who is trying to be your current girlfriend once again..."

Now that caught Zack's attention.

__New Haven__

Cody shook his head at Bridget. "Sorry. My dance card is full tonight. I'm just wanting to spend the evening with.." He added emphasis. "... _my_ _girlfriend_ here."

Bridget just nodded and smiled. "Ahhh...Girlfriend. Gotcha." She winked at him. "See you around, Cody..."

She headed off just as quickly as she appeared. Cody turned back to Bailey. "That was easier and much less awkward than it could have been."

Bailey just shook her head. "I saw that wink. Why do I get the feeling that you haven't see the last of her yet?"

Cody shrugged. "I don't know. I mean...I told her I have a girlfriend and wanted to spend the evening with you. Could I have said more?"

"I don't know...I just get the feeling she doesn't really see me as any kind of threat to her getting what she wants."

He smiled. "Well, then I guess she'll have to learn the hard way that she is wrong about that."

She smiled back. "Yeah, she will...or she and I will have to have a long, long talk. And if that doesn't work..." She paused. "I don't know. I mean, she is a reject from the Swedish Bikini Team and is probably pretty tough..."

Cody pulled her into his arms closer. "Doesn't matter to me. The only bikini team I'm interested in is the one you're on."

Bailey blushed a little. "Really?"

He grinned. "Uh huh." He then laughed. "You know, I didn't know it was possible for you to blush with that make up on tonight, but you did."

She laughed too. "I guess so..."

"Bails, I really mean it. You have absolutely nothing to worry about in regards to her. If she didn't get the message tonight, I promise I will set her straight if she tries anything again..."

"Really?"

"Count on it." He leaned in and kissed her. "Now, I wonder how things are going for our roommates..."

Outside, Tapeworm and the Cat had gotten some bottles of water and headed outside to continue to talk where they could actually hear each other without straining. He decided it was time to ask some questions.

"So, where have you been for the past year? I've looked for you around campus, but this is the first time I've seen you since..."

Gertie laughed. "Well, I hate to break it to you, but I don't go to class dressed like this. Most days, I look like a normal college student."

Tapeworm hung his head. "That was a dumb question on my part. It just felt like we had a connection last year, but its dawning on me just how little I actually know about you. I don't even know what year in school you are or what residential college you are in."

"I'm a sophomore, and Davenport was the residential college they assigned me when I got here."

"Okay, we're getting somewhere. I know something about you now. Tell me more."

She laughed again. "Take it easy, Bluebeard. We have all night." She paused. "Well, I assume we do. You don't have a girlfriend out there looking for you do you?"

He laughed. "Nope. In fact, they only two girls I routinely hang out with are my buddy's girlfriend and her roommate. What about you? A boyfriend out there who might want to kick my butt for daring to talk to you?"

"Not that I'm aware of." She smiled. "So, those are the only two you hang out with, huh? I understand one is off the market, but what about the other girl? Just seems to me if you two hang out that much something could have happened between the two of you. Has it?"

Tapeworm shook his head. "Not really." He paused. "I mean...don't get me wrong. She's really great, and she's a very attractive girl. But from the moment we met last winter, we've always been just friends. And, if I'm honest, I've been trying to find you for over a year now..."

"I'm honored. A whole year, huh?"

"Yeah." He paused and began laughing. "Besides, its not like it would matter anyways..."

"What wouldn't matter?"

"Just forget about it. I'd rather just focus on getting to know you better right now."

"No, tell me. I want to know."

He shrugged. "Well, I was just saying that it doesn't matter with that other girl I was telling you about. Even if I did like her as more than a friend now, a friend is all she sees me as." He grinned. "I'm 100% firmly in the friend zone there."

Gertie let out a nervous little laugh. "Don't you just hate when that happens?"

"Yeah, I do. It sucks."

"So, if you weren't in the friend zone with this girl, would you be here talking to me or talking to her?"

Tapeworm just looked at her. "Ummm...I don't know. I guess I really hadn't considered that before. I just figured I was permanently banished to the friend zone and there was no way to get out of it. Besides, you're here and that's what matters to me."

"You really think so?"

"Yeah, I do..." He frowned. "You know...you're kind of a strange one, you know that?"

Gertie smiled. "So I've been told, but there is something else I should tell you right now..."

"What's that?"

"Well, I'm going to give you a choice...stay here and talk to me or..." She removed her hood and her mask. "...stay her and talk to me..."

Tapeworm's eyes went wide as his mouth fell open in shock. "What the...Gertie? You're the Cat?"

__Boston__

Zack just looked at the gypsy in surprise. "How did you know all of that?"

She smiled back at him. "I already told you. Madame Lenora sees and knows all..."

"Well, you have my attention now, Madame Lenora. What else do you see in your crystal ball?"

She laughed. "Please come into my tent...and it will cost you $30 to find out more."

Zack fished out some money from his wallet. "Done."

The gypsy grabbed the money out of his hand. "Please come in and take a seat."

Zack complied. And as he sat there, Madame Lenora began looking into her crystal ball. After a few moments of gazing into it, she began smiling.

"What do you see?"

"I saw two young people who were once in a relationship. And from what I see, that was a first for you, was it not?"

He nodded in amazement. "Yeah, it was..."

"And then she left to go somewhere for a great opportunity and left you behind..."

He nodded again. "Yeah, she did..."

"And now she has returned to get you back. It seems she cut short her opportunity to come back...for you."

Zack paused. "So she says, but I'm still a little leery."

"I see your reluctance too. I see that part of you wants to get back what you once had. But I also see another part of you that is scared of getting your heart broken again."

He sighed. "Exactly..." He paused and swallowed. "So, what does it show? Will I get hurt again?"

Madame Lenora smiled. "I can't tell you that..."

Zack frowned. "What do you mean you can't tell me? What did I pay you thirty bucks for?"

She laughed. "Settle down. I can't tell you that because I can't see it in my crystal ball because its all a little cloudy. You know...like nothing is for certain yet."

"Do you see anything else then?"

She paused to look again. "Uh oh..."

"Uh oh? Why are you saying uh oh?"

She paused as she looked again. "I see a potential tragedy befalling your family in the not so distant future. And I see that when it all over, you will have all the answers you will ever need..."

That caught Zack's attention again. "Family tragedy? What happens? Does something happen to my Mom or my Day or my Mimi?"

"I can't tell for sure. Its not real clear. It...it almost looks like some shook up a snow globe inside of my crystal ball." She shook her head. "But I can see that when it reaches its conclusion, there will be peace in your life once again. Now, what that means, I'm afraid I don't know."

Zack just sat there for a moment. "Can you tell me anything else? Does anyone die?"

"Again, I can't see anything definite. Just that you will come out the other side knowing what you need to know about your situation."

"I see. I..."

Madame Lenora shook her head. "Sorry. Your time is up, Zack..."

"Wait a minute! How did you know my..."

But that was all Zack could get out. The next thing he knew, he was practically being pushed out of the gypsy's tent. Landing on the ground just outside the tent, he just shook his head in confusion.

"What was that all about?"

The answer he got was that he heard his own name being shouted. He turned and saw Maya running up to him very quickly.

"Zack, what are you doing on the ground here? Did you fall and hurt yourself? When I got out of the bathroom, I looked around, couldn't find you anywhere, and then I saw you laying on the ground..." Maya noticed the look on Zack's face and paused. "Are you alright?"

Zack paused. "I don't know. I was just talking to this fortune teller, and she was telling me these weird things before she literally threw me out..."

Maya frowned at him. "What fortune teller?"

Zack turned to point to Madame Lenora's tent, but the place where it had been was now empty. He just stared at the open space in confusion. "But...but...but...it was right there!"

__New Haven__

Tapeworm just continued standing there in shock. He kept blinking his eyes wondering if eventually the sight in front of him would change, but it never did.

"Gertie? You...you're the Cat I've been looking for for the past year? But...but...but I don't understand!" He just looked at her again as a million questions bombarded his mind. "I mean...how did you even know I was Captain America?"

She smiled at him. "I found out at the end last semester. Bailey left me some pictures for me to have over the summer to remember you all by. I was flipping through them when I saw a picture from this party last year. I recognized Cody's brother Zack as the person my cousin was playing that game with. And then I saw the picture with you in it as Captain America. That's when I realized you and he were the same person..."

Tapeworm felt himself getting dizzy. "I think I need to sit down..."

Gertie grabbed his hand and lead him over to a rock wall and helped him sit down. "Take a deep breath and then a drink of your water."

He nodded and complied. And while he did that, he tried to get his bearings. "Let me get this straight. You've known for almost six months now who I was, and you never told me. Why didn't you just tell me?"

She paused. "Well, its kind of like what you said only in reverse. I felt like I was trapped in the friend zone. I didn't know how you would react if you knew or that if you did if you would even be interested me in that way. So, I borrowed Cody's six month plan and see what would happen."

He just shook his head. "Wow. I bet Cody and Bailey will be just as floored as I am right now..."

Gertie paused again. "Actually...they won't be. I let Bailey in on my plan the day I got back this semester, and she's been helping me figure out what to do. I asked her not to tell Cody at first, but about a month ago, we had to bring him in on the plan. He was going to try to set you up with someone else, so I had to stop him from doing that..."

Tapeworm just looked at her. "So...I'm the last one to know?"

"Yeah. But please don't be mad at them. They were just trying to help."

He took another drink of water to give him a moment to collect his thoughts. "I'm not mad at anyone. I'm just trying to digest all of this. You have to admit...this is all a little crazy."

Gertie's face fell as she thought that had meant she had failed. "You think so?"

"Yeah, I do." He smiled at her. "I mean. How often does a guy like me get the best of both worlds?"

This time, Gertie was taken aback. "Huh?"

Tapeworm laughed. "You remember the one night we all watched Sleepless in Seattle together?"

"Yeah..."

"Well, at the end, Meg Ryan said she had hoped that her anonymous guy from the internet really was Tom Hanks' character. Truth time...I was the same way in hoping you would end up being my mysterious Catwoman..."

She blinked this time. "Huh? You were? But Cody never let us in on that..."

He smiled. "Because I never told him. I always kept it to myself. You know...chalking it up to wishful thinking. Alright, you've had your big reveal tonight. I guess its my turn to lift my metaphorical mask now. Last fall, I saw you on campus in the library and thought you were the most beautiful girl I had ever seen before in my life. But by the time I made my way over try to talk to you that day, you were gone. I kept my eyes open for you after that, but never saw you again. And then last Halloween, I meet you here as the Cat only I didn't know it was really you. Things changed for me then. I had such a good time with the Cat that night that I wanted to know the woman under the mask. So, my search switched to her. By the time you moved in with Bailey, I still thought you were beautiful, but I was focused on finding the girl underneath the cat. I felt like I had a real connection to her...which is you." He shook his head and began laughing. "Stupid me had you around for almost ten months now and never put two and two together."

Gertie just looked at him again in disbelief. "You thought I was beautiful then?"

"Yeah. Of course I did. Still do"

She laughed this time. "And here I went and changed how I look in hopes that it would be more appealing to you."

He smiled. "Either way, it doesn't matter to me. Yeah, both ways you're beautiful. But its what's underneath that I more attracted to. Now, you're the total package." He took a deep breath. "Alright, truth time here again, and this is the part that I've never told a soul...even Cody. Since the beginning of the semester last spring, I've had a great time just hanging out with you. I was getting to the point where I found myself torn between you and the Cat. But like I said, I thought I was stuck in the friend zone with you so I focused all of my attention on finding the Cat again. And then tonight, I find out you two are one and the same...and I couldn't be happier about it."

She smiled back at him. "You really mean that, don't you?"

"Yeah, I do. So, I guess there is only one thing left to say, huh?"

"What's that?"

"Gertie, its time for me to man up and ask you out on a real date." He paused as a little uncertainty crept back into his mind. "So, would you like to go out some time...on a real date?"

Gertie grinned. "I thought you'd never ask. I do have to ask...which one are you asking out? Me or the Cat?"

He laughed. "Whichever one will actually go out with me..."

"Well, I don't think the Cat will be seen again after tonight, but I know Gertie can't wait. Now, until we can do that properly, how about we get out of here tonight and go somewhere and celebrate?"

"Sounds good to me." Tapeworm paused. "I'm guessing we should find your accomplices, huh?"

About that time, Bailey and Cody came outside after not having seen either Tapeworm or Gertie for quite a while. And when they saw that Gertie's mask was off and both appeared to be smiling, they both sighed in relief. After walking up to them, Bailey smiled at them herself.

"Well, I guess everything is out in the open now."

Cody laughed. "Yeah...or I guess you could say that the Cat is out of the bag..."

Everyone shook their heads and groaned at hearing him say that.

He held up his hands. "Okay, okay...That was bad, but I couldn't help myself. So, how did things go between you two?"

Tapeworm just gave him a look. "You know, I should be upset with you, Man..." He smiled. "But I'm not. Looks like I might finally have a girlfriend of my own now."

Bailey smiled. "Congratulations to the both of you them!"

Gertie smiled too. "Thanks. I'm just glad everything seems to have worked out in the end. Actually, we were about to find you two to get out of here and celebrate. You two down for that?"

"Of course we are. But we can't stay out too late. We have to get back to the grind of organic chem early in the morning."

Tapeworm nodded. "Understood." He turned to Cody and teased. "I guess I'm going to have to get you to teach me the dos and don'ts of having a girlfriend now, huh? I'm ready for you to teach me, Sensai..."

While the girls laughed, Cody gave Tapeworm a look indicating they would definitely talk later. But when the girls turned to him to see his reaction, he just held up his hands. "Hey...Buddy, women are like snowflakes. They are all different and unique in their own ways. What works for Bailey might not work for Gertie and vice versa." He grinned. "But I will tell you this one thing I know for sure...Now that you have a girlfriend, no more sharing your Subway sandwiches with other girls. TV has taught me they tend to get upset about you doing that..."

_To be Continued..._


	10. First Dates and Old Friends

_Episode 10_

__"First Dates and Old Friends"__

__I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did.__

__Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them.__

__Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves.__

__And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so...__

__New Haven__

The next week passed by fairly smoothly and uneventfully. All day Sunday was spent returning to the grind of studying for their test the next day. And by that Monday morning, Cody and Bailey were sick of looking at the material for their organic chemistry exam. After having studied for it all of fall break and all day Sunday, they were more than ready to take the exam and get it over with. In fact, the only respite they had had from it was the brief break that had taken to do their lab report for their organic lab. By the time they walked into the exam, they were even getting nauseous at the sight of the words 'organic' and 'chemistry.' It was only after they walked out of their test did they finally acknowledge how glad they were that they had studied so hard for it. To say it had been rough was an understatement, but both felt they had been ready for it and did well.

The rest of the week, everyone was more than happy to take it easy. And on Wednesday night, the actual night of Halloween, the four students were more than happy to just take it easy in the girl's room watching classic horror movies on TV. Naturally, neither Tapeworm nor Cody minded at all when their girlfriends buried their faces in their shoulders at particularly scary moments. And by the time it time for the guys to head back to their rooms, both agreed to to their ladies' requests to check under their beds to make sure there weren't any redheaded dolls lying in wait for them.

But instead of heading to bed themselves, Cody and Tapeworm changed into their workout gear and made their way to the Berkeley College gym for their workout. There were no worries about having to wait for the equipment to open up as it was a ghost town down there. And as they were doing their weight training, they had time to talk amongst themselves.

"So...Friday night is your first official date, huh?"

Tapeworm looked up and nodded. "Yeah, it is. I got reservations at that French restaurant you told me about."

Cody nodded. "Sounds good so far. Gertie should like that."

Tapeworm paused and sighed. "I sure hope so. I'm really nervous about it though."

"Why's that?"

"Well, like you said, its our first official date as a couple. I just want it to be perfect..."

Cody grinned. "Don't worry. It will be. After all, you've waited so long for this, and good things come to those who wait."

"I wish I was as confident as you are. What did you and Bailey do on your first ever date?"

Cody paused. "Well, you probably shouldn't try to compare..."

"Why not? What did you do?"

"Ummm..." He paused again. "We kind of sort of went to a Hannah Montana concert in Hawaii..."

Tapeworm rolled his eyes. "Great...No way I can do anything that will compare to that..."

"You have to remember that we were on the boat at the time docked in Hawaii, and Hannah was there for a teen cruise. And all of this was before everything about her having a secret identity came out, and we all realized she had been playing everyone for fools. You have to remember...we were sophomores in high school, so we didn't know any better. Plus, at the time, Bailey was her biggest fan..."

"Still. That was a big first date to have. Actually, it probably set the bar pretty high."

Cody smiled. "True. And to be honest, I don't remember much about the actual concert itself. I was still on cloud nine that I was on an actual date with Bailey. What I do remember is how happy I was that day. And I think you'll have similar memories about yours."

"I certainly hope so..."

"You will. I mean...I'm not blind. I've seen how the two of you have been with each other this week. All the little touches and private conversations when you don't think anyone is watching."

Tapeworm rubbed the back of his head. "You saw those?"

"Yeah, Bailey and I both did. Just remember that you two have a friendship you are basing your relationship off of. Its not like you two are total strangers going out for the first time who know nothing about each other. You've known each other for almost a year now."

"True. Its just different now. Gertie is no longer just a friend of mine. She's my girlfriend. I just don't want things to be weird now. I've loved the first week we've had together, but isn't it what you call the honeymoon period?"

Cody laughed. "Probably, but remember...the honeymoon is only over when you say its over. The was one of the problems Bailey and I had a few years ago. We let the honeymoon phase end and began to take each other for granted. This time, we're on a second honeymoon..."

"But you two have been back together almost two years now."

Cody smiled again. "Yeah, we have. And neither one of us is in any hurry for the honeymoon to end this time. We're a lot wiser now and know to look out for anything that could put a damper on things. Just remember...always talk to and be honest with each other."

Tapeworm nodded. "Thanks." He paused. "So, you two are really headed down to New York for the weekend?" He shook his head. "I still can't believe you guys are friends with Lil' Little."

"Believe it. And yeah, we're heading down to see our friend Marcus and his girlfriend again. They've been bugging us to head back down to hang out with them again since Valentine's Day. We figured this would be a good weekend to do so." He paused and grinned. "So, you two behave yourselves as Bailey and I won't be here to keep you two out of trouble..."

Tapeworm laughed. "Dang it!"

Cody just looked at him. "Whoa...deja vu." He shook his head. "Anyways, speaking of road trips, Yale is playing Harvard up in Cambridge this year the Saturday before Thanksgiving. Why don't you ask Gertie if she wants to come up for that weekend to see some of our old haunts and meet Zack? You guys can stay with us."

"You know...that sounds like a good idea to me. I'll make sure to ask her about it this weekend." Tapeworm grinned. "So, with the girls not around, any words of wisdom for me?"

Cody laughed. "Actually, I do. Allow me to tell you about the wonders and usefulness of the number six..."

__Boston__

On that Friday afternoon, Zack and Maya once again met up for lunch after Maya's last class of the week and before Zack's last one. And early on, Maya could tell Zack was still hung up on what happened the previous weekend.

"So...you still think you talked to a fortune teller last Saturday?"

Zack sighed. "I don't think I did. I know I did! If I didn't, where did the thirty bucks I had in my wallet go?"

Maya paused. "I don't know. Maybe you spent it at the football game on food and don't remember?"

He shook his head. "No. I only bought a hot pretzel and a drink there. While those cost way too much, it wasn't near thirty bucks. May, I know I talked to a gypsy that night. I don't know where she went, but I remember everything she said clear as day."

"So, you still think there is a tragedy going to hit your family sometime soon?"

He just shrugged. "That's what she said. And I've talked to everyone since then. Everyone is fine. The only thing I can think of is my Dad is due to fly back from Europe after the beginning of the year. But those flights take off and land just fine every day."

"So, you think that's what she was talking about then?"

Zack just gave her a look. "Does that mean you actually believe me now?"

"I believe that you believe that is what happened. So, I choose to believe that it did. But maybe its something else? You know, things do happen from time to time. And you said yourself that she never said someone would actually die."

"I know, but I'm still going to keep my eyes open and be on alert. I'll feel a lot better when Dad is safely back in the States."

"When's he due back?"

"Late January. His band is making a stop in Japan on the way home and then back to Seattle for a few days to see his old stomping grounds."

Maya nodded. "I'm sure he'll be fine. How about we change the subject though to something not so...bleak?"

"And talk about what?"

She smiled. "How about the fact that in two and a half weeks, we get three days off for Thanksgiving? The perk of yesterday being the first means Thanksgiving comes sooner this year."

Zack paused and nodded. "That's true. But I already know I have to work all day the Wednesday before. I'm trying to get my hours in as quickly as I can so I have our reading period and finals week off."

"How is that coming along?"

"Well, these next three weekends, I'm taking those weekend trips I was telling you about before."

Maya shook her head and laughed. "Sounds so rough having to go on those trips and doing nothing again..."

Zack shrugged again. "Actually, these will be different. I have projects or papers due the next three weeks in my non stats classes. It'll give me a chance to get them done in peace while getting paid and building up hours. The way Moseby and I have it figured, I should have my 400 hours done that Thursday before classes end the following Wednesday."

"That sounds like a good thing."

"Yeah, it does." He shook his head and began laughing. "Who would have ever thought that I would be so dedicated to getting my work done early? We both remember how I was in high school..."

She smiled. "Oh, I remember. And as you remember, you weren't the only one who put things off until the last minute. But, we've both gotten a lot better about that. That means we're growing up and maturing."

"People keep telling me that. I guess I'll have to believe it eventually."

"Well, you should because its true. I know I've said it before, Zack, but I am so proud of you."

He smiled back at her. "Thanks." He paused. "But if you ever see me turning into Cody, please smack me! That would totally suck..."

Maya laughed. "Deal. Though, I doubt anyone who knows you two could ever get you two confused nowadays." She paused. "I know Bailey would vehemently disagree with me, but I think I'm sitting with the better twin right now."

"You really think so?"

"I know so."

_New Haven_

Tapeworm was finishing getting ready for his first official date with Gertie and was checking himself out in the mirror in his room. While the jacket and tie were not what he normally would choose to wear, he wanted to look nice and make the night a memorable one. Deciding he looked presentable enough, he grabbed a few things and made his way to the stairwell. One floor up, he knocked on Gertie's door. And when she opened it up, she just smiled at him and whistled.

"My, my...you actually clean up pretty well."

He smiled back. "Well, I figured this was a good enough occasion for me to do so. And if I may say, you look positively stunning tonight."

She kept smiling. "Why thank you, kind sir. So, what do you have planned for tonight exactly?"

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a folded piece of paper. "I made us reservations at the Union League Cafe for eight o'clock. Cody told me it was a really nice restaurant, so I thought it seemed appropriate. I even printed out a copy of their menu for us to look at before we head out." He glanced down at it and frowned. "Uh oh..."

"What? What's wrong?"

Tapeworm sighed. "The menu is in French. Cody failed to mention that part to me. And I don't speak a lick of French. I'm going to look like an idiot trying to order..."

She smiled. "Here. Let me take a look at it. I did take two years of French in high school and two more classes in it last year to satisfy my foreign language requirement. "

He handed her the menu, and she looked at it. And that's when her eyes went wide. "Oh my gosh! Did you happen to see the prices?"

"Yeah, I did. But I kind of figured this would be a night to splurge a little. Besides, you come from money. I just wanted to take you some place you'd be accustomed to."

Gertie shook her head and laughed. "Dennis, Dennis, Dennis. Yeah, I do come from a family that has a lot of money, but I'm a girl of much simpler tastes."

Tapeworm paused and sighed. "Hence why you're with a guy like me, huh?"

"Absolutely not. I'm with you because I can just be myself with you and I can have fun with you. Did I ever tell you how much fun I had the first night we hung out just the two of us?"

He paused again and frowned. "But that was the night my Patriots beat your Ravens. You had fun that night?"

She laughed again. "Okay, it wasn't the most ideal night ever, but yeah, I had fun..."

He shrugged. "Huh. I kind of figured it would be one of those situations where the phrase 'Other than that, how did you enjoy the play, Mrs. Lincoln' might have fit..."

Gertie rolled her eyes. "Well, the Ravens losing did suck, but I had a lot of fun just hanging out and us being ourselves. We've been doing that this past week too, and I've loved every minute of it."

"So have I, but I figured I should make a big deal out of this. I mean, Cody was telling me that his and Bailey's first date was at a Hannah Montana concert in Hawaii."

"Dennis...we aren't Cody and Bailey. Yeah, their relationship in theory is a good example. But they do what works for them and what they enjoy. This is our new relationship. We should do what works for us and do what we enjoy..." She smiled and teased him. "Besides, if you ever tried to take me to a concert of Hannah's or Miley or whatever she calls herself now or to a concert of Bieber, I promise you I'll break up with you on the spot."

He smiled. "No worries there then. Neither are my cup of tea." He paused. "How about we cancel this reservation then. We had pizza that first night, and if you like brick oven style, I think I know just the place."

She smiled back. "Sounds perfect to me. And afterwards, we can walk down to the movie theater and find something that is playing. Maybe in honor of us getting together at a Halloween Party, we can go see _Halloween 3D_"

"I've been wanting to see that movie!" He grinned again. "Mind if I head back downstairs and lose the jacket and tie?"

She paused and began laughing again. "While I'm enjoying the view, I don't mind...as long as you don't mind me changing into jeans and something more casual too."

"Deal! I'll be back in fifteen minutes!"

_New York City_

That same Friday night, Marcus, Courtney, Bailey and Cody were all sitting around in a coffee shop in Greenwich Village, sipping on cappuccinos after having dinner nearby.

"Its about time you two came back to New York City. We were beginning to think that you two didn't like hanging out with us..."

Cody laughed. "No, nothing like that. We've just been really busy with school and everything. And, we spent almost all of last summer working in Boston."

Bailey nodded. "And the breaks I did get, I went home to Kettlecorn to see my family."

Marcus just shook his head at them. "Well, I guess I'll let it slide this time. Just don't make it a habit." He paused. "Speaking of Boston, I understand Maya is back..."

Cody nodded. "Yeah, she showed up the day we got back to Boston after our freshmen years. And she is determined to get Zack back."

Courtney was confused. "Wait. Who's Maya?"

Briefly, the other three filled her in on who Maya was and what had happened between her and Zack right before everyone graduated. Courtney just shook her head.

"Wow..."

Bailey nodded. "Yeah."

Marcus paused. "So, what is the current state of her and Zack's relationship?"

Cody shrugged his shoulders. "Your guess is as good as mine. Zack tells me that they've agreed to work on being friends again and see what happens from there."

"And that's all you know?"

"Well, yeah. Remember, I live in New Haven and he lives in Boston. I'm not around Zack all the time to see what is really going on. I can only go by what he tells me. And its not like I have any more Corsican fruit so I can read his mind."

Marcus shook his head and laughed. "I still can't believe I missed all of that..."

Cody shuddered. "I wish I could have missed it..." He paused, smiled and wrapped his arm around Bailey. "But, everything worked out in the end."

Bailey smiled too. "Yeah, it did. And it looks like things have worked out for you two as well."

Courtney just laughed. "I suppose so. So far, he's being a good boy, so I guess I'll keep him around for a while. Marcus has actually been pretty great. He's been real understanding about me having to spend a lot of time studying and doing my school work."

Marcus grinned. "What can I say? The time I do get with you is worth the wait."

Cody and Bailey just looked at each other and shook their heads.

Marcus continued. "And Courtney has agreed to come to the ATL for a few days after Christmas to meet some of my family."

Bailey smiled. "Well, I hope you have as much success with his family as I've had with Cody's. His Mom and Mimi have been wonderful."

Marcus laughed. "Oh, my Nana will love her. I'm just hoping I have better luck at first with her Dad than I hear Cody did with yours."

Cody rolled his eyes. "Mr...Clyde and I had a rough beginning, but we're doing a whole lot better now. We both know that the other loves Bailey and only wants the best for her."

"Well, from what I hear, you have her Grammy Pickett in your back pocket. So, you have someone there who will take up for you."

Courtney shook her head. "Anyways, we're heading back to New York on the 30th. I figured for once in my life, I wanted to be in Times Square and watch the ball drop."

Marcus nodded. "It'll be a first for me too, and it sounded like fun." He paused. "Hey, why don't you guys come down for it too?"

Bailey turned to Cody and smiled. "I would love to do that! What do you think?"

Cody shrugged and smiled. "I guess we'll be back for New Year's Eve then."

"Excellent! Invite Zack to come with you. Maya too if it won't be too awkward."

"I'll mention it to him over Thanksgiving."

"Great. I have plenty of room for everyone to crash at my place afterwards. We can have an after the ball drops party there."

Cody was about to say something when he felt a hand on his shoulder. He looked up and saw two women in their early 40's staring at him. Cody looked back at them in confusion.

"Yes? Can I help you?"

"Ben? Why are you acting like you don't know who we are?"

He shook his head. "I'm sorry. My name's not Ben. Its Cody."

The two women just looked at each other and began laughing. The one with light brown hair turned back to Cody. "Our apologies. You look just like my stepson and Monica's nephew, Ben. You two could be identical twins."

Cody smiled. "No worries. I do have a twin brother, but his name isn't Ben either."

"Well, again, we apologize. You guys have a good evening. Let us buy you guys some cookies to make up for our mistake. I used to work here years ago, so I know they're good."

The four teens nodded, and the two ladies walked off to the counter. Cody took the chance to turn to Bailey and smiled.

"If this Ben guy looks just like me, he must be a very handsome guy..."

_New Haven_

After the weekend was over, it was back to the grind for had two more weeks of classes before Thanksgiving break began, and naturally, their professors decided those two weeks would be fine times to have exams, papers and projects due. For Cody and Bailey, it meant having another Genetics exam as well as brief four page paper they had to write in Philosophy in response to some of the works of Immanuel Kant. But the one assignment they were actually looking forward to was for their Statistics class. As that Tuesday was the national election day and 2012 was a Presidential election year, they had a project regarding the election results. And on Tuesday night, they were sitting in Cody and Tapeworm's common room watching the results coming in on TV. As they were writing down the information they would need, Tapeworm and Gertie stopped by the room after dinner.

Tapeworm shook his head. "I never thought I'd see the day where you two were glued to the TV. You've been watching it since you got back from your lab this afternoon..."

Cody laughed. "Actually, we're doing our homework. We have a stats project based on the election results..."

Bailey laughed too. "And as we both had to vote by absentee ballots because of not being close to our polling places, this is a way for us to feel like part of the action today..." She paused and looked up at Gertie and Tapeworm. "This is the first time I've seen you both together since this weekend. How was the first date?"

Gertie grinned. "I thought it was perfect."

Tapeworm grinned too. "I would have to concur with that."

Bailey smiled. "Glad to hear that." She turned to Cody. "I was right, you know. They do make an adorable couple."

Gertie blushed. "Thanks. So...how do the election results look?"

Cody shrugged. "So far, none of the swing states have been called. So, nothing earth shattering yet. And we expect Obama to get a big push when the far western states like California, Oregon and Washington close their polls in a few hours."

Bailey laughed again. "Its also kind of weird that we knew weeks ago how our home states would go. I'm from Kansas, the home of Bob Dole."

"And I'm from Massachusetts, home of the Kennedy clan."

Tapeworm grinned. "Well, I suspect you both are pretty liberal anyways. I mean...you are at an Ivy League school. This place is dripping with liberal ideology."

"Well, we disagree on some things, but on most issues, we have a unified front. On some things, we do have conservative views, but on others, we are indeed very liberal. So, we don't fit perfectly into any political party platform."

Gertie nodded. "I know what you mean. I wish we lived under something like a parliamentary system that embraced more than two parties."

Tapeworm laughed. "Maybe we should start our own party? We can call it the Sweet Tea Party..."

_To be Continued..._

**AN: Since the next chapter will be posted after the Super Bowl, I'll go ahead and say now I'm predicting a Giants win. They just seem like a team of destiny to me. Now, I will suggest that people keep an eye open for the Matthew Broderick/Ferris Beuller commercial. I saw it on line and thought it was hilarious.**_  
><em>


	11. Guess Who's Coming to Dinner?

_Episode 11_

__"Guess Who's Coming to Dinner?"__

__I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did.__

__Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them.__

__Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves.__

__And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so...__

__Boston__

The next couple of weeks of school until Thanksgiving break finally passed by for everyone. For Cody, Bailey, Gertie and Tapeworm, that meant they got to spend almost all of their free time finishing up all papers and projects their professors felt needed to be done before the week long break. And by free time, that meant time they we're studying for or taking exams the professors deemed necessary too. On that Friday afternoon when their break officially began, all four of them had finished everything they needed to do by noon, so they were able to be on the road to Boston by one o'clock. They were all exhausted, but the thought of no school for a week did pep them up. And heading to Boston for a few days would actually work out fine for both Tapeworm and Gertie. Since Tapeworm's family lived in Amherst, it wouldn't be that long of a drive back from Boston. And for Gertie, she was easily able to change her flight out from Hartford to Baltimore on Saturday to a flight out from Boston to Baltimore on early Monday afternoon. In fact, she was even able to get some money back.

For Zack, that Friday meant his usual routine. He met Maya for lunch that afternoon before heading on to his last class of the week. And when he got back to his suite that afternoon about six o'clock, he was a little surprised to find four people hanging around his suite taking it easy and having a good time.

"Well, well...Looks like there is a party at my place that I wasn't invited to..."

Cody laughed. "No party here, and we told you we were having company for a few days. Tapeworm you know, and this his girlfriend and Bailey's roommate, Gertie."

Zack nodded. "Oh yeah, I seem to remember you mentioning something like that now." He shrugged. "Good to see you again, Buddy, and Gertie, its nice to meet you."

She spoke up. "Actually, we've kind of sort of met before. You were at the big Halloween party last year, and it was my cousin you were playing that ping pong ball game with..."

Zack cringed. "Oh...I don't really remember a whole lot about that night. I do remember I had a partner, but I remember absolutely nothing about her. I wasn't in the best shape that night."

She laughed. "Don't worry about it, neither was she. And as we've all learned, those parties can be kind of crazy. It was at that same party this year that Dennis and I finally got together..."

He frowned. "Dennis? Who's Dennis? I thought you were Tapeworm's girlfriend?"

Tapeworm sighed. "Dennis is my real first name, Zack..."

Zack just looked at him. "It is? Huh...you learn something new everyday. To me, you've always been just Tapeworm. No offense, Man."

"None taken. I should be used to it by now. Cody didn't recognize my real name either when he first got to Yale."

"Well, I'd love to be able to hang out with you guys this weekend, but I have to change, pack a bag and then I'm off to Quahog, Rhode Island for one of my weekend work assignments. What are you guys planning on getting into?"

Cody spoke up. "We're heading up to Cambridge tomorrow for the annual Yale/Harvard game."

Zack rolled his eyes. "That sounds exciting. Watching two teams that suck..."

Cody smirked at him. "As I recall, both of those teams beat BU this year..."

Zack smirked right back. "Like that's an accomplishment. Its a team full of walk ons. I could have tried out for the team and be starting right now."

"Yeah, yeah. Keep telling yourself that...Starting towel boy maybe."

"Oh no...that's job would be all yours. You're already so good at it..."

Tapeworm shook his head and began laughing. "Oh how I've missed listening to those two go back and forth like that."

Bailey just sighed. "I'm so used to it by now, I pretty much just tune it out. You tend to do that after almost four and a half years..." She turned to Gertie. "Don't let them fool you though. They may bicker more than average siblings, but deep down, we all know they have each other's backs and deeply care for the other. I've seen them hug and profess their love for each other before..."

Cody sighed. "Anyways, after the game, we're just going to show Gertie and Bailey around some of our old haunts here in Boston. You know, stop by and show them where we all went to middle school together, and if we have time, maybe see if we can out what happened to Max..."

Zack paused. "Max. Good call. I've wondered what happened to her..." He shrugged. "But don't think about us getting the old band back together. You guys may have time for it, but I don't..."

"What makes you think we would have time?"

Zack rolled his eyes again. "Gee...let me think. A whole week for Thanksgiving, an October fall break and two weeks for spring break. Do you guys actually ever go to class down there?"

But by then, Gertie's interest was peaked and she turned to Tapeworm. "You guys were all in a band?"

He nodded. "Yeah, we were...for a little while at least. Zack was lead guitar, Cody was on keyboards, and I was the drummer. But if you think Oasis had issues with brothers in the same band, you haven't seen anything..."

She just grinned. "So, I'm dating a bad boy, rocker drummer, huh? I think I like that fact..."

Tapeworm blushed, but Zack just laughed. "Yeah, but we traded in both Max and Tapeworm for Lil' Little when we wrote a song for Jordin Sparks. She actually recorded it...but all the money went to charity."

Tapeworm groaned. "Thanks guys. I appreciate that." He shook his head. "I wish I could have gone to the boat with you guys. The more I hear, the more I know that I missed out on so much fun..."

Gertie turned to him again. "Well, you've got me now. You don't need to worry about missing out on any more fun now..."

And the next day, fun is just what they had. The football game the next day was a bitter, hard fought battle. But in the end, the cheers of four Yale students couldn't overcome Harvard's home field advantage of Harvard Stadium. In a close fought "The Game", Harvard prevailed 35-31 to continue one of the nation's oldest and most bitter rivalries that had begun in 1875. While the game itself was interesting, the highlight was the prank pulled off by students of nearby MIT. Seems that school hates Harvard almost as much as Yale does. But, everyone had fun, especially at the tailgate which is often more fun that the actual game itself. Of course, with the thousands of alumni of both schools in attendance, the net worths of those in attendance would be astronomical. And again, Cody and Bailey joked about who they would root for if they found themselves going to Harvard Medical School in a few years.

The rest of the afternoon was spent showing Gertie and Bailey around Boston. And they even went to some places Bailey hadn't been before like Buckner Middle School where Cody, Zack, Tapeworm, and Max had gone to junior high. And they were actually in luck that the school was open for an 8th grade basketball game. So, they walked in and looked around their old school. And as they did, Cody was recognized by someone.

"Cody? Cody Martin?"

Cody, upon hearing his name, turned and saw an lady that while she was a few years older, he recognized instantly.

"Mrs. Militch? What are you doing here at Buckner? I thought you were the principal at Cheevers High?"

She smiled at him. "I was, but Cheevers High got consolidated with another school last year in an effort to cut the budget. The principal at the other school had more seniority, and he got to continue on as the one of the consolidated one. As for me, I was offered the job of principal here as a consolation prize."

He just looked at her in surprise. "Cheevers is consolidated? We never heard anything about that. And one of our old teachers at our high school was working there..."

"The teachers there were retained. Just not the principal." She shrugged. "Anyways, its good to see you again, Cody. I wish we had never lost you to that school on the boat. While that certainly hurt, we did lose Miss Tipton and your brother for the same reason. So, one step back, two steps forward."

Cody smiled. "Well, going to the boat was the best thing I ever did. Mrs. Militich, I'd like to introduce you to the love of my life that I met at Seven Seas High, Bailey Pickett."

Bailey smiled too and shook her hand. "Nice to meet you, Ma'am"

Mrs. Militich smiled back. "Likewise I'm sure."

"And these are my friends Tape...Dennis and Gertie. Dennis actually was a classmate of ours here at Buckner before his family moved to Alaska. If he hadn't, he might have gone to Cheevers with us."

"Nice to meet you both as well. So, what are you up to nowadays, Cody?"

"Well, we're all sophomores at Yale now."

Mrs. Militich smiled again. "I should have known you'd end up at an Ivy League school." She turned to Tapeworm. "And it would have been nice to have another future ivy leaguer at Cheevers too. Lord knows we could have used you to boost our test scores." She paused, shook her head and turned back to Cody. "Yale, huh? Did you not like Harvard?"

Cody paused. "Ummm...long story. Lets just say it involved Zack..."

"Enough said."

"Actually, while we're here, maybe there is something you can help us with. We all had another old friend of ours who went to school here with us that we've lost track of. Maybe you could check the old records for us and see if you can find anything that will help us locate her?"

"Of course. Anything for one of my best former pupils and fellow birdwatching enthusiast."

After leading them to her office, she sat down at her computer. And after Cody and Tapeworm gave her Max's full name, she did a search of the school's old records.

"Ahhh. Here she is. It looks like her records and transcripts were forwarded to the Fiorello H. La Guardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts in New York City." Mrs. Militich looked up at them. "That is actually pretty impressive. I'm sure you all are too young to remember, but that's the school that the film and TV show Fame were set at. Its a very prestigious school."

Bailey paused. "The made a remake of that show a few years ago, but from what I remember, it was pretty terrible. But if she got into that school, she must have been really good."

Cody turned to Tapeworm. "Well, she headed off to New York. We now have another clue as to what happened to her. Unfortunately, she could be long gone from there by now. But, our buddy Marcus may have some contacts with some pull at that school. I'll call later and see if he can find out anything for us."

With that settled, they said goodbye to Mrs. Militich and headed back out into the city to do more sightseeing and see more places of interest. Cody and Tapeworm would have liked to have shown their girlfriends the actual math camp they attended, but it was several hours away. And nobody wanted to waste so much of the remaining time they had together in the car. Both kicked themselves for not stopping there on the way back into Boston.

On Sunday afternoon, Zack returned from his business trip, and immediately began telling everyone about seeing a car driven by a dog with a baby in the front seat. Of course, no one actually believed him and thought he was just telling a wild and crazy story. But, they did fill him in on what they had found out about Max from Mrs. Militich. Zack just nodded and said Max at a school of performing arts actually made sense. And with Zack back home now, they all decided to go grab some dinner and catch a movie together that night. Zack didn't want to be a fifth wheel at first, but the others finally persuaded Zack to call Maya and have her join them.

And that night, they headed out to a local restaurant that Zack, Cody and Tapeworm all remembered from their youths. As they ate, Maya got the chance to meet Tapeworm again and get to know he and Gertie a little better. Eventually, Zack turned to her and began shaking his head.

"Can you believe these guys have tomorrow and Tuesday off. While we'll be slaving away in classes and work for two more days, they'll be doing absolutely nothing. At least Tapeworm and Gertie will be traveling tomorrow, so that's at least a little acceptable. But my brother and Bailey will be acting like they don't have a care in the world."

Cody shook his head. "I don't think Bailey and I will be doing nothing. Tomorrow, we're going to show Gertie around Boston some more before her flight leaves..."

Tapeworm interrupted and teased his girlfriend. "Yeah, we might take her down to Foxboro and show here where a real football teams plays. And then maybe back to Fenway to show her where a winning baseball team plays."

Gertie rolled her eyes. "My Orioles have just had a string of bad luck lately..."

Maya laughed. "Don't worry about it. Zack and I like to give each other a hard time too over sports loyalties. I still give him hell over the helmet catch in the Super Bowl a few years ago between my Giants and his Patriots. And me being a Yankee fan and him a Red Sox fan is the source of a lot of fun. He'll soon learn that Boston can't beat New York for a title in anything that matters..."

Zack just shook his head. "Lets not change the subject away from my brother and Bailey goofing off while we're in classes, shall we?"

Cody sighed. "Even after we say goodbye to them, we're coming back here and doing our two lab reports that are due when we return to school next week. And then on Tuesday morning, we're both planning on completing our applications for the Ethics, Politics and Economics program so we can turn them in when we get back to school."

Bailey sighed. "Which sounds a lot more fun than this time next year. We're planning on taking the MCAT not this January but the next one. We'll probably be in full study mode by then. We're already planning on starting studying for it early next summer."

Gertie nodded. "Yeah, I need to finish my formal application to the school of architecture over break too. Thanks for reminding me of that." She pulled out her cell phone and gave herself a reminder on there.

Cody continued. "And then on Tuesday afternoon, we're going shopping to buy everything we'll need for Thursday." He smirked at his brother. "You know...so you can stuff yourself before falling asleep on the couch with your pants unfastened. And on Wednesday, while you're working, we'll be preparing everything. So, I wouldn't say we'll be doing nothing these next few days."

Zack paused. "Well, I guess you two might be a little busy..."

Maya spoke up. "I want to thank you guys again for allowing me to join you guys for Thanksgiving this year."

Bailey smiled at her. "No problem. Just remember to wear loose fitting clothes that day..."

"Yeah, Zack told me the exact same thing. I'd like to do my part though. I have Wednesday off, so if you guys want some more help preparing things or whatever, just let me know."

Cody shrugged. "If you want to, we could actually use some help that day. Mom told us she has an appointment with her doctor that morning, so she won't be able to assist us."

Zack frowned. "I didn't know that. Is she okay? What kind of doctor is she seeing?"

Cody cringed a little. "Her gynecologist..."

Zack cringed too. "Could have done without knowing that..."

Cody shook it off and turned to Maya. "Anyways, we're planning on sleeping in that day first, but we should be getting started about ten that morning. So, be at the hotel by then if you want to help." He paused and teased his brother. "We'll be up in London's penthouse though to prevent Zack from making a light night raid on the refrigerator and devouring all of our hard work."

Zack rolled his eyes. "I did that once, and you'll never let me live it down. How was I supposed to know what all that food was for?"

Cody just stared at him. "It was the night before Thanksgiving. What else would it be for?"

On Monday, they did indeed show Gertie around to some of the local sports venues, but before long, it was time to get her to the airport to catch her flight home. And since they couldn't go past security without a boarding pass, they had to say goodbye to her before she went through. Cody and Bailey said goodbye to her first and then made themselves scarce so Tapeworm and Gertie could say their goodbyes in privacy.

"So, you'll call me once you land at BWI to let me know you arrived safely, right?"

Gertie smiled at him. "Of course. And I'll want to make sure you got home safely too. Who knows? Maybe next year, you'll be coming home with me or me going home with you?"

He smiled back at her. "I'd like that." He paused. "Actually, I like you too much to subject you to the insanity that is my family just yet."

She laughed. "I think I'd be okay."

"Yeah, you probably would. I'd make sure they'd be on their best behavior. Anyways, you'll call me right before you board your flight back on Sunday too, right?"

"Again, Of course I will."

"Good. I'll be there at the airport in Hartford to pick you up."

"Good. Just remember. I'll see you again in less than a week."

"Less than a week still sounds way too long to me..."

She smiled. "I know..." She leaned up and gave him a gentle yet chaste kiss. "I hope that will tide you over until then..."

He smiled back at her. "I hope so too...as long as there is another one of those waiting on me when I pick you up."

"Count on it."

Soon after, it was time for Gertie to head through security. Once she did, Tapeworm, Cody and Bailey headed back out to the short term parking lot where they said their goodbyes.

"See you two next weekend."

"Yeah, we will." Cody paused. "You okay, Man?"

Tapeworm nodded. "Yeah, I guess so. I know we've only been dating three weeks, but I already miss her."

Cody nodded back at him. "That's a good thing. But, you'll talk to her again in a few hours. And trust me, there is no feeling in the world like seeing your girlfriend again after being apart for a little while."

Bailey smiled. "And believe me, it works both ways. She'll be just as anxious to see you too. We hope you have a good holiday with your family."

"The same to you guys. Don't let Zack eat too much..."

And with that, Tapeworm was gone too. After getting back to the hotel, Cody and Bailey did stop to take a break and catch their breath. Of course, they both vowed not to mention it to Zack or else he would go back into his tirade of them doing nothing again. By the time he got home that afternoon from class, they had finished their organic chemistry lab report and were putting the finishing touches on their genetics one. And when walked in the door, both just smiled and waved at him from the table in the suite as if to show him they were actually doing work. He just rolled his eyes at them as he went to his bedroom.

The next day, they woke up fairly early to get their applications for the program in Ethics, Politics & Economics done. They would need four things to do that. The first was the cover sheet which they both printed off from the program's website. The second thing they would need was a copy of their current Yale transcript. So, they each used their Yale student net id and passwords and ordered one online that would be ready to be picked up the Wednesday after they got back to school. The third thing they would need was a previously submitted paper written for a course related to the subject matter of Ethics, Politics and Economics. So, both perused the papers they had previously written in their economics and philosophy classes. With the other's help, they each chose the one they felt was the best example of their work. The fourth and final item they needed was a a brief (1,000 word maximum) statement of purpose including academic interests and a proposed area of individual concentration. And that was something they had both already discussed and had topics in mind. With them planning on heading to medical school, they thought the area of bioethics was a perfect connection between their two areas of study. Since Zack often referred to him as one, Cody's focus was in the hot button topic of cloning, specifically therapeutic cloning. As for Bailey, she wanted to begin her focus on pediatrics and chose gene therapy and manipulation via modern technology. So, with only four pages to say what they wanted to say, they got to work. By noon, they had each written a rough draft, had the other edit it and suggest changes, produce new drafts, had the new drafts edited and produced final drafts both were happy with.

"Cody, I don't want to toot our own horns, but based on our transcripts so far and statements of purpose, I think we are shoe ins to the program. The Director of Undergraduate Studies practically told us as much."

Cody paused. "I hope so, Bails, but I almost got burnt before by being too overconfident."

That caused Bailey to pause herself. "That's true..." She paused. "But this time, it doesn't matter as much. Either way, we'll still be at Yale together. While its true we should be cautious about our expectations, I'm going to continue to be optimistic. We're both due for some good luck in something like this."

He smiled at her. "I'll do the same then." He stretched his arms and yawned. "You ready to print out our list from last year and head to the grocery store?"

"Yeah. I can't wait to see you navigate the aisles again. Do we have time to grab lunch while we're out?"

"I think so. Besides, this is the last thing we have to do today. I say we take it easy tonight before we get to work tomorrow."

So, that's what they did. Once out in the suburbs, they grabbed lunch before spending a couple of hours hitting the grocery store. And once again, the trunk of the car was filled with paper bags of groceries. Back at the hotel, they actually had to get a luggage cart so they could get everything up to London's penthouse in one trip. And once it was all stored away, they just returned to Zack and Cody's suite to take it easy. And when Zack returned from class that day, he just shook his head and mumbled that they probably hadn't gotten up off of the couch all day.

On Wednesday, they did indeed sleep in some – until 8:30 that morning. They grabbed a quick breakfast at the hotel's coffee shop before heading up to London's penthouse by a quarter till ten. They were getting everything organized to begin preparing the meal when there was a knock at the door. Upon opening it, they found Maya standing there.

"I'm here and ready to work."

Cody nodded. "Lets get to it then." He handed her the spare apron to put on while he and Bailey donned their own personal ones.

Maya just shook her head and laughed. "Those are the most adorable things I've ever seen. When did you get those?"

Bailey smiled. "I got Cody's for his birthday last year, and he got me mine for Christmas last year."

"Well, I think they're great. So, what do we do first?"

And that's when Cody gave Maya the same tasks he gave his Mom the year before – peeling duty. While she was doing that, Cody and Bailey began their tasks from the previous year as well. And when asked, Bailey knew which one was a French knife immediately. By late that afternoon, everything was thawed, prepared and ready to just be put in the oven the next day. As they were finishing up, Zack arrived back home from work and checked in on them.

"Its good to see you two finally doing something productive while you've been back in Boston."

Cody and Bailey just looked at each other and shook their heads.

The next day was Thanksgiving itself, and London's penthouse was filled with people to celebrate it with. There was Bailey, Cody, Zack, Maya, London, Todd, Arwin, Carey, Moseby, Tut, Esteban, Francesca and Mother Ramirez. And to everyone's surprise, there would soon be one more surprise special guest that no one had any idea was about to show up.

At the end of the Cowboys game, everyone was getting ready to eat when there was a knock at the door. London rolled her eyes.

"We're about to eat. However is delaying that better have a darn good reason for doing so!"

She got up to answer the door herself, and when she opened the door, her mouth fell open in shock.

"Daddy?"

Wilfred Tipton walked into the penthouse with his arms wide open. "Londy!"

__To be Continued...__

**AN: Dang, I'm good. I not only picked the Giants to win, but I also realized I had already predicted the Patriots would lose the Super Bowl in Season 1. Congrats to Eli Manning for continuing to step out of his brother's shadow. Of course, the most impressive performance of the weekend was on Saturday. Anthony Davis is in full on beast mode now.**


	12. Black Friday

_Episode 12_

__"Black Friday"__

__I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did.__

__Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them.__

__Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves.__

__And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so...__

__London's Penthouse__

London was so shocked that she was frozen in place as she was staring at her father standing there with a smile on his face and his arms wide open expecting a hug. It wasn't that she was unhappy to see him, but him showing up then of all days was not high on her list of things she was expecting. Especially since her boyfriend was there that her father wasn't aware of and would most likely not be too happy to learn about. Finally regaining some clarity, she stepped into his arms and returned his embrace. When she finally pulled back, she just looked at her father.

"Daddy! What are you doing here?"

Wilfred Tipton kept smiling. "Well, I was in town for some last minute business when my assistant reminded me that today was Thanksgiving. So, I decided to come here, spend it with you and take you out for dinner." He paused. "Of course, I did have to fire my assistant for wanting to have today off..." He shrugged before looking around and noticing everyone else in the penthouse staring at the two of them. "Londy, what's going on here? What are all of these people doing here?"

She sighed. "I'm having Thanksgiving dinner with my friends, Daddy."

"Oh...I see. Guess I should have called ahead then..."

Cody spoke up. "We have more than enough food for everyone, Mr. Tipton. We would be honored if you would join us."

Wilfred paused, narrowed his eyes and then glared at Cody. "You're the kid who blackmailed me to get into Yale, aren't you?"

Cody swallowed nervously. "Well, kind of sort of, Sir. But I don't like to think of it as blackmail..."

Mr. Tipton continued to glare at him. "You aren't offering to feed me today just to try to butter me up for something else, are you?"

Bailey spoke up to defend Cody. "No, Sir. We're all here just to celebrate the holidays with the people we care about."

He shifted his gaze over to her. "And you're the girl who's family farm I almost turned into a plastic bag factory. And I would have if Londy hadn't blackmailed me." He looked around again. "This is my worst nightmare. I'm surrounded by people who like to blackmail me!"

London sighed. "No, Daddy, you're not. Besides, aren't you the same person who was proud of me for doing it to you? You've always told me to respect those who find ways of getting the best of you..."

Wilfred paused and shrugged. "Well, that's true." He continued looking around at everyone else inside London's penthouse, and that's when he noticed Moseby and pointed at him. "You...for some reason you look vaguely familiar to me."

Moseby sighed. "Its me, Marion Moseby, Mr. Tipton. For years, I was the manager of this hotel and then for three years, I was the manager of your S.S. Tipton. I was also the best man at one of your weddings..."

Mr. Tipton shook his head. "No, none of that rings a bell at all." He paused to think. "You ever been in the army?"

Moseby shook his head and sighed again. "No, Sir."

"So, you work for me, Mosely?"

Moseby rolled his eyes. "Its Moseby, and no sir, I don't. I quit when you shut down the S.S. Tipton. I'm now the Vice President of London Inns. I work for London now."

Wilfred shrugged once again. "Then I don't care who you are." He continued looking around. And that's when he saw Todd sitting on the couch next to Zack and Maya. His eyes narrowed again and felt his blood beginning to boil. "What is one of those treacherous St. Marks doing here!"

London closed her eyes and shook her head. "He's here because I invited him, Daddy." She paused to gain her courage. "Because he's my boyfriend..."

Mr. Tipton whirled to look at his daughter. "He's your what?"

London grabbed her father's arm and drug him out into the hallway. And by then, steam was rising from Wilfred Tipton's head as he began to rant and rave.

"Londy! How could you? You know that the Tiptons and St. Marks are mortal enemies!"

She sighed and shook her head again. "No, Daddy. You and his father might be, but Todd and I aren't. Daddy, I really like him!" She paused. "In fact, I might really love him..."

Wilfred's eyes went wide in shock. "But Londy!"

London glared back at him. "But nothing, Daddy! You want me to be happy, don't you?"

"Well...yeah, but..."

Now London was as angry as her father. "No buts, Daddy! I've never got involved in your personal life, have I? You've married a string of new stepmothers for me, but I've never complained once. And why have I not complained? Because I want you to be happy! So, I keep hoping and praying you'll finally find someone who really does make you happy. I've found that person for myself already in Todd. Can't you just be happy for me?"

Wilfred Tipton just looked at his daughter and sighed. "Of course I want you to be happy, London. But he's a St. Mark. You can't trust them!"

"People say the same thing about us Tiptons! But I have a room of people in there who are my closest friends in the world and who I care about. And I've given them able reasons before not to trust me, but they still do. Besides, you don't even know Todd. He's a wonderful guy who treats me with nothing but respect. He loves spending time with me, and I with him. And Daddy, he has a big future ahead of him as well. Sure, he's the sole heir to the St. Mark fortune, but he's not relying on that. Todd wants to make his own path in the world. He's now at Harvard Dental School, and while his father is paying for it, he got in on his own merits. Todd is very smart and sweet and kind and...everything."

He slumped his shoulders. "You're serious about this, aren't you?"

"Yes, Daddy, I am. Todd's a good man. I'm not asking you to be his best friend or to even hang out with him, but I am asking you to accept that he's a big part of my life..."

"And he really makes you happy and treats you well?"

London smiled. "Yes, he does."

Wilfred sighed. "Alright, I'll try to learn to accept this...for your sake."

She threw her arms around her Dad. "Thank you, Daddy!"

"Well, you are my only child...that I know of, and I do want the best for you. If you think he is, then so be it." He smiled at her. "Again, I'm proud of you, Londy. You stood up to me again and held your ground."

She smiled. "I know...and I didn't even have to blackmail you this time..."

Wilfred laughed. "Good. I've got enough people inside there who like to do that already."

London gave him another look. "Be nice, Daddy. You know as well as I do that Cody deserved to go to Yale. If not for a screw up by the school _you_ owned, he would have gotten in from the very beginning."

"Well, yeah, but now I have to pay for it..."

She rolled her eyes. "Weren't you the same person who said he was making money off of paying for it?"

He sighed. "True, but still...its the principle of it."

London laughed. "Aren't you the same person who always told me to screw your principles if it was profitable?"

Wilfred smiled again. "Okay, I might have said that...And I admit, the tax write offs for putting two poor people through an ivy league school is pretty nice."

"Well, look at it this way. Both are good returns on your investment. Both have perfect 4.0s so far. And like with the whales, you know this is getting you very good publicity. It shows the world that you do care about more than the bottom line..."

"But I don't..."

London ignored him. "But they are more than just that. Both are very good people and even better friends. They've always been around to help me when I need it. Bailey is like a sister to me, and the twins are like my little brothers. Cody and Bailey are planning on being doctors. And Zack will one day help me run London Inns. I trust them all completely." She smiled. "And on top of that, the meal they've cooked should be delicious."

"I remember you telling me they were you're family too back on that farm. Tell you what. Keep me updated on how they are doing with their studies. If they mean that much to you, I want to keep tabs on them..."

London sighed. "Daddy...Don't you dare do anything mean or underhanded..."

Wilfred laughed. "Now, when I have ever done anything like that before?"

"Daddy!"

"I'm kidding, Londy!"

Inside the suite, everyone was still milling around the penthouse waiting for London and Mr. Tipton to return. And no one was more nervous about what was going on in the hallway than Todd.

"They've been out there for a really long time." He sighed. "I think our fathers think our last names are Capulet and Montague instead of Tipton and St. Mark. Her father hates my whole family, and my father feels the same about them."

Cody tried to calm him. "Well, from my own personal experience, I know that with some time and patience, you're girlfriend's father can eventually come around. When I first met Bailey's Dad, he didn't like me at all. But, almost two years later, he's essentially already given me his blessing to ask Bailey to marry me someday. So, don't let it get you down."

"You really think so?"

"I know so." He smiled. "Besides, London has enough blackmail on her father to get her way with him if it comes to that. You should know by now that what London wants, she usually gets."

Todd laughed. "That's one thing you don't have to tell me..."

Bailey decided to change the subject to try to get his mind off of what was happening out in the hallway. "So, what can you can tell us about is Harvard Dental School? Harvard's medical school is one we're thinking of applying to in a couple of years..."

Todd was about to answer her when the door opened and London and Wilfred walked in. Everyone was a little apprehensive until they saw the smile on London's face.

"We've discussed everything and come to an understanding. With that settled, I'm starving! So, let's eat!"

And that's what they did.

__Zack and Cody's Suite__

That evening, after everyone had stuffed themselves without any further drama, everyone seemed to find a place to settle in and fall asleep. Well, except for Cody and Bailey. They headed back down to Cody's suite to stretch out on the couch there to watch something on television they really wanted to see. And as they were watching it, Zack and Maya walked into the suite.

"There you two are. You disappeared while everyone else slept..."

Cody laughed. "Well, there was no room left for us to stretch out up there. Besides, there was something on TV we wanted to catch, so we figured we'd come down here."

Maya turned to the TV and frowned at what she saw. "What are you watching exactly?"

Bailey answered her. "Its the annual Punkin' Chunkin' competition. Teams from all over the country build machines to see who can hurl a pumpkin the farthest. We read in the school newspaper that the Yale School of Engineering had a team competing in it this year. There are all kinds of methods and machines they are using. Some are slingshots, catapults, centrifugals, trebuchets and even pneumatic air cannons. One of the air cannons once fired a pumpkin over a mile."

Zack just looked at them and then back at the TV screen. "Let me get this straight. They build machines designed to solely throw a pumpkin as far as they can?"

Cody nodded. "Pretty much."

Zack shook his head. "That's...that's..." He paused and grinned. "Awesome! How have I not heard of this before?" He turned to his brother. "Why didn't you tell me about this when we were younger? It would have combined your nerdery and my love of throwing food! We could have dominated!"

Cody just laughed. "I don't think so, Zack. Some of these machines cost over two hundred thousand dollars to build. I don't think our allowances would have quite covered those expenses..."

He paused. "You may be right about that. So, this is how you're going to spend the rest of your night?"

Bailey nodded. "Pretty much. We're planning on heading out early in the morning and battling the Black Friday crowds. Its our real chance to get our Christmas shopping done. Our last final is on December 18th, and then we fly out of Boston on the 22nd to head back to Kettlecorn. So, that only gives us three days in between, and we know Carey will want us to spend them with her..."

Maya sighed. "My last final is on the 21st, and I'll have to be out of my dorm the next day at noon. I probably should get as much of my shopping done tomorrow as possible too."

Bailey shrugged. "Well, you're more than welcome to head out with us. But I have to warn you, we plan on being out of here by 6 AM."

"That's fine with me. I can catch up on my sleep later tomorrow." She paused. "But that will require me to leave my dorm by at the latest 5:30 to be over here by 6:00."

Zack paused to consider something. "Why not just crash here tonight? I mean the couch pulls out. I can't guarantee it will be comfortable, but it will let you sleep an extra half hour..."

Maya turned to him in surprise. "Really? Are you sure?"

He shrugged. "Why not? I don't think Cody and Bailey will mind..."

Both of them shook their head. "We don't mind."

Maya checked her watch. "Its 9:30 now. I should probably head over to my dorm now to grab some clothes to sleep in and for tomorrow before the dorm goes on lock down at 11:00."

Zack smiled. "Come on, I'll head over with you. I mean...we are friends again. Its the least I can do to escort you there and back. We wouldn't want you passing out on the subway due to too much tryptophan..."

Maya just smiled at him as they left the suite. And as they did, Cody and Bailey just looked at each other with their eyebrow's raised. Both were wondering just what all they had missed around Boston while they were away at school.

The next morning, everyone was up at the crack of dawn to head out and hopefully be the recipients of good deals. At a quarter till six that morning, Cody, Bailey, Carey, Maya and even Zack found themselves heading down to the subway to begin their Black Fridays. And by two o'clock that afternoon, Cody was with Zack looking through a store trying to find something for their Mimi. But Zack was all shopped out and ready to get out of there.

"Can we go home now? I think there is a college football game between LSU and Arkansas starting in 30 minutes."

Cody laughed. "If you've finished your shopping, you can leave at any time."

"I think I'm just going to do the same as last year and get everyone gift cards. They're a whole lot easier than dealing with all of this..."

Cody shrugged. "If that's what you want to do, fine..." He paused. "Are you going to get Maya a gift card too?"

Zack just looked at his brother. "Maya? Am I supposed to get her something?"

"Well, you did say yourself that you two were friends again. I'm almost positive she's probably buying you something. And I would be willing to bet that she's putting a lot of thought into it to try to get you something you really want..."

Zack sighed. "You're probably right. Maybe I'll buy her a nice sweater or something."

Cody began laughing. "Yeah...good luck with that."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean that I've known Bailey for four years, but I avoid buying her clothes at all costs."

Zack was confused. "Why would you do that?"

"Well, while I know what sizes she is and generally what her style is, there is way too much room there for me to screw up. Even though the margin of error is smaller for me, I'm not willing to take that risk."

"What do you mean?"

"Lets say I buy her something that she doesn't like because of the way its made or its either too big or too small...or even worse, I get her something she finds to be too risque. Can you imagine what could happen then?"

Zack paused. "She would just take it back and get something that does fit or that she actually likes?"

Cody laughed again. "If only it was that simple. Zack, we're guys. No matter what, we'll never understand completely how the female mind works. And to be honest, I don't think I want to know. In some women's minds, if you get them something too big, they could interpret that as you thinking they are...carrying a few extra pounds. Even worse, if you get them something too small, they could interpret that as you saying that's the size you want them to be. Either way, a completely innocent gesture on our parts gets completely misconstrued, and we end up in the doghouse..."

Zack just shook his head. "That sucks..."

"I know. Fortunately, I don't think Bailey would react in either of those ways because she knows I love her just the way she is. But, I'm going to stay on the safe side and not take any unnecessary chances."

Zack paused before he realized something. "Wait a minute! A couple of years ago, you bought her a Yale sweatshirt for her birthday. That's clothing."

Cody grinned. "Ahhh...you mention one of the two exceptions to the rule. The first is what I call novelty items. Those include sweatshirts that are meant to be baggy or the cow slippers I bought her or something like pajama pants that are meant to be lounge wear. Those, you can get away with without much worry at all."

Zack sighed. "What's the other exception?"

Cody kept grinning. "That's the easy one. The other exception is things that you've been with her when she tries on and know for a fact that it fits her and she likes. But maybe she can't decide if she wants to spend the money to buy it for herself. That's code for 'I really like this and wouldn't mind if you bought it for me.' Trust me, I've learned to pay attention to that. Earlier today, she found a pair of boots she liked but felt they were way too expensive to splurge on. Five minutes after we left the store, I said I had to go to the bathroom..." He patted one of his bags. "...and went back inside and bought them for her."

Zack shook his head. "I don't know what's more depressing. These stupid rules or the fact that I'm having to have you teach them to me..."

Cody teased. "I figured you would already know all about this. I figured it would have been a chapter in your precious Guyble..."

Zack rolled his eyes. "I must have missed that chapter..."

"Look on the bright side. As long as you pay attention to things they say, they will constantly drop you hints to make everything easier on you when it comes to buying them gifts. I mean...for a few months, Bailey has been telling me about how she would love to have a new smart phone. She's even shown me pictures of it in magazines. Trust me, I can be a little naive and dense at times, but I got that hint."

"And you bought her one?"

Cody grinned again. "Not yet, but I will. I got a notification email the other day that the one she wants will be half price on Cyber Monday. I'll order it for her then. I'm doing the same thing with a book she's been talking about wanting to read as well. After those three gifts, I can get her a couple of gift cards to places I know she'll like. That way, I've shown that I listen to her, and gave thought to her gifts. The gift cards will just be added bonuses and it won't matter how impersonal they are."

"Well, that's all well and good for you, but I still have no idea what to get for Maya..." He paused. "You know...as a gift to for a friend."

Cody nodded knowingly. "Alright, you've been hanging out with her a lot more lately. What has she talked about?"

Zack sighed. "About how her Giants beat the Pats again and how Eli Manning is a better quarterback than Brady now..."

Cody laughed. "You have your answer right there!"

"I do?"

"Buy her an Eli Manning jersey. The way you talk, she'll love it..."

Zack paused to think. "That's actually a pretty good idea. And I could buy her a pair of Giants pajama pants to go with it."

Cody smiled. "Now you're thinking! There's a sporting goods store near here, and I need to pick up something there myself for Bailey..."

"And maybe a gift card to BW3s because she loves chicken wings so much?"

"Zack, there may still be hope for you yet..."

Zack rolled his eyes again. "Gee, thanks. But I'll have to give them to her before she heads back to New York."

That caused Cody to remember something. "Speaking of New York, Marcus has invited Bailey and I to head down to New York to spend New Year's Eve out in Times Square with he and Courtney. He told me to invite you to come along too. Since Maya will already be there, maybe you can ask her to join us?"

Zack began chewing on his bottom lip. "That does sound like fun. I'm in, but I'll have to ask Maya and see if she would even want to join us..."

Cody just grinned again. "If you're going to be there, I can almost guarantee she will..."

"You think so?" Zack paused. "By the way, I need to thank you and Bailey for making her feel so welcome this past week. I know you two didn't always see eye to eye with her..."

"Because I know she is a big part of your life...whether you are willing to admit that to yourself yet or not. And I'm not stupid, Zack. I remember how you were with her. While you noticed I had never been happier with Bailey, I also noticed that you had never been happier than when you were with Maya."

"You really think so?"

"That's what I think, but it only matters what you think. But if she is what you want, I will support you 100%. I know you and Bailey don't see eye to eye on a lot of things either, but you accept how much she means to me. Its the least I can do to do the same."

Zack sighed. "Well, I meant it. Remember, I once was able to read your mind. I know what she means to you. And I know how happy you are. I may like to give you a hard time, but I do want you to be happy. And for some reason, she actually loves you too and enjoys being with you."

Cody smiled. "Thanks...I think. And I just want you to be happy too. If that includes you being with Maya again, so be it." He paused. "How has Mom taken it that you two are getting close again? Mom's usually a pretty mellow person, but can turn into a tiger protecting her cubs..."

"That's the thing. She hasn't said much about it at all. Once, she asked me if I knew what I was doing. I told her I thought I did, and she seemed to accept that. I think its similar to how she looks the other way about you and Bailey's sleeping arrangements. As long as we're happy, she is willing to give us some space."

"I can see that. So, how are things really going with Maya?"

"That's the problem, Codester...the more time I spend with her, the more comfortable I feel with her again."

"Isn't that a good thing?"

"It could be...but it also scares me to death..."

_To be Continued..._

__**AN: I just wanted to give out a shout to my boy PSAV (if he's still reading this) and ask him how he liked the UF/UK game last night...LOL**


	13. Delays and Departures

_Episode 13_

__"Delays and Departures"__

__I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did.__

__Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them.__

__Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves.__

__And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so...__

__New Haven__

On early Sunday morning, Cody and Bailey bid everyone farewell as it was time for them to head back to New Haven and finish out their fall semester. When they finally arrived back at Berkeley Hall, it was 10:30 in the morning, and both of them immediately noticed that neither of their roommates had gotten back yet. So, after quickly unpacking their bags, they loaded up their backpacks to head next door to the library to get their reading for Monday and Tuesday out of the way. After taking a couple of hours to finish their homework for organic chem and philosophy, they took a break for a late lunch before returning and doing their homework for stats and reading for genetics. By five o'clock that afternoon, they finally finished with everything and returned back to their rooms. And immediately once they got there, they could tell that their roommates were now back as they found them sitting on the futon in the girl's suite both breathing heavily.

Bailey grinned. "We didn't walk in on something and interrupt, did we?"

Gertie shook her head as she took a deep breath. "Nah. You caught us recovering from the walk back from the parking garage. You would think that with the more seniority we get around here, the closer we'd be able to park to our dorms. But no, that would make way too much sense..." She sighed. "Anyways, how was your break?"

"It was good. We ate way too much and got almost all of our shopping done. And your breaks?"

Tapeworm smiled. "They were okay, but we're both glad to be back here now. When did you two get back?"

Cody answered him. "About ten thirty this morning. We've did our lab reports over break like we said and came back and did our readings for Monday and Tuesday once we unpacked."

"My, my...aren't you two eager beavers..."

Cody laughed. "Well, yeah, but this time we had a legitimate reason for it. Our goal is to get ahead so that next Wednesday afternoon we can begin our finals preparation for genetics and next Thursday afternoon for stats. While we only have three actual sit down finals, we do have a take home final in philosophy that we once we pick it up, we only have forty-eight hours before we have to turn it in."

Bailey nodded. "So, our goal is to be prepared enough for everything else that we can pick it up late next Friday afternoon, have all Friday night, all day Saturday and most of the day Sunday to work on it before turning it in on Sunday afternoon. And then, we can begin studying for our organic final on Monday morning."

Gertie shuddered. "That doesn't sound like very much fun at all. I'm suddenly remembering why I hate finals time so much..."

Bailey shrugged. "Its what we have to do. The good news is that once we turn it in, we should be able to catch our breath a little bit. We'll have Sunday night, Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday to study for our organic chem final on Thursday morning. Then, we'll have the rest of the day Thursday, Friday and Saturday morning to study for our stats exam on Saturday afternoon. And then we get our real breather. We'll have Saturday night, Sunday, Monday and Tuesday morning to study for our genetics test on Tuesday afternoon. Of course, that means we'll only have about twenty hours to pack our things up before the dorm closes on that Wednesday at noon."

Tapeworm groaned. "Don't remind me. I have a final on that Wednesday morning. By the time I get back from it, I'll only have thirty minutes to get my stuff out." He paused and smiled. "Thankfully, Gertie is done on Tuesday like you two, so she's going to pick me up outside of my final in my car before I drive her to the airport."

"Sounds like a plan then. If you need our help to help load your stuff in your car on Tuesday night, just let us know."

"I'd appreciate that." Tapeworm paused and shook his head. "Here is to hoping these next few weeks aren't as physically draining as spring break was last year..."

__Boston__

While those at Yale had two weeks of classes left when they got back from Thanksgiving break, those at BU had a little longer – they had two and a half weeks. Fortunately for Zack though, that Thursday of the second week was his last day of work for two weeks. And he was happy to watch Moseby sign off that he had put in 411 hours for his field experience class. But as he was leaving work that day to head over to campus, he stopped by Moseby's office.

"What are you still doing here, Zack? I figured you'd be out of here as soon as you could knowing you'd be off for the next two weeks..."

Zack laughed. "Oh, believe me. My plan is to get out of here as soon as I can. But I was reading over the BU bulletin over the weekend to get a glimpse of what I was looking at next semester when I noticed something. To graduate, I have to take a course in International Experience. How am I going to do that?"

Moseby sat back in his chair and paused to think. "That's right. I remember having to do that too. I spent a summer working at a resort in Jamaica to satisfy my requirement."

Zack just looked at him. "Jamaica, huh? Spend any time hanging out with the Marley family?"

Moseby looked away from Zack and broke eye contact before he began hemming and hawing. "Well...you know...at the time, they were very popular down there, and..."

Zack busted out laughing again. "Oh my gosh! You did! Who would ever have guessed that Moseby was no stranger to the herb!"

Moseby looked up and glared at him. "What I did or did not do when I was your age has no bearing on your present situation!" He calmed himself down. "But you do bring up a good point. And while we do have some locations in Canada and its a foreign country, I don't believe that would be in the spirit of what that class is supposed to be about. Tell you what. London is supposed to stop by my office this afternoon. I'll bring this up to her and get her thoughts on the matter."

And a few hours later, that's what Moseby did. After giving London a full status update on London Inns, he broached the problem Zack brought up to him earlier.

"So, he's going to have to have to get some sort of international experience in order to graduate."

London sighed. "Can't we just send him to Toronto or Montreal for a summer?"

Moseby just looked at her. "You know as well as I do that Toronto's culture is very similar to that in America. And Montreal...well, lets just say Zack doesn't speak French and wouldn't be very useful up there."

She rolled her eyes. "Fine. So, what are we supposed to do then?"

"I was kind of hoping you had an idea..."

"Moseby, what in the world would make you think that I..." She paused and a smile broke out on her face. "Strike that. I may have an idea afterall..."

"I'm all ears then."

"Well, over Thanksgiving, Daddy and I talked about more than just Todd. We might have come up with an interesting joint venture between our two companies..."

Moseby sat back in his chair and groaned. "Oh boy. This should be interesting..."

__New Haven__

By the afternoon of Tuesday, December 18th, Cody and Bailey were physically drained. The past two weeks had been exercises in not only concentration and determination but of endurance as well. They had busted their butts for two straight weeks to make sure that they had given themselves a fair chance to do well on all of their finals. It had begun with their take home philosophy finals. It was a little strange to them both not being able to work together, but after averaging five hours a sleep a night, they had both invested almost 35 hours a piece working on their take home exams when they handed them in. But the only rest they allowed themselves was the hour for dinner in the dining hall that Sunday night. Beginning right after that, they dove head first into organic chem. And until Thursday morning, they studied, ate, drank and slept organic chemistry. That final was a bear, but they felt they had actually done well on it. They had no time to rest on their laurels though as they dove right into studying for stats after grabbing lunch. They continued on this same type of marathon studying through their stats final and on through their genetics final. And as they walked out of that test on Tuesday afternoon, they just looked at each other and exhaled.

"Bails...Right now, I'm thinking of heading to medical school early..."

She just looked at him in confusion. "What are you talking about?"

"The way I feel right now, I might as well donate my body to it. I have absolutely no energy right now..."

Bailey let out a weak laugh. "Save room on the slab next to you for me then. I'm exhausted too. All I want to do right now is go to bed."

Cody sighed. "I wish we could. But we still have to pack our things tonight, and then help take Tapeworm's stuff over and pack it in his car..."

She groaned. "That's right. No rest for the weary, huh?"

"Well, look at it this way. Its not as bad as if it was spring semester. We don't have to pack up everything we own. Just the things we'll need over winter break."

"That's true. But after we're done tonight, I fully plan on sleeping in tomorrow."

He smiled. "Don't have to twist my arm to get me to agree to that. I say we set our alarms for 10:30. That's the latest we can sleep in and still have time to shower, go get the car and bring it back over here and load it up before the lock us out."

She yawned. "Sounds like a plan to me, Cody Bear."

And that's what they did. After having dinner and packing up everything they would need over Christmas break, Bailey rode the shuttle over to the parking garage with Gertie as Cody took his turn standing in a metered parking spot holding it for them. Fortunately, no one drove past to try to take it away from him. If they had, he wasn't sure he had enough fight in him to keep it. When the ladies returned, they put a couple of quarters in the parking meter and began hurrying to load all of Tapeworm's bags into the trunk. Once done, it was Cody's turn to drive the car back over to the parking garage and catch the shuttle back. By ten o'clock that night, everything was packed and ready to head out the next morning. And to give Tapeworm more privacy to finish studying, Cody hung out with Bailey and Gertie in their room. But nobody in the room could keep their eyes open for much longer, so Cody crashed in Bailey's room that night.

The next morning, they actually did sleep in until ten o'clock. And immediately, they knew that had to get moving. So, an hour later, they were showered, dressed, had all of their bags gathered together in Cody and Tapeworm's room, and headed out to catch the shuttle over to the parking garage. By 11:30, they were back and loading up both cars with theirs and Gertie's things. At a little before noon, they had both cars filled with everything everyone would need over break. The only thing left to do was to say goodbye.

"You two have a good break and have fun in Boston, Kettlecorn and New York."

Bailey smiled as she hugged her roommate. "We will. You have a good break too, and tell Tapeworm to have a happy holidays for us when you pick him up."

"I will." Gertie then hugged Cody. "You two take care of each other for me, and I'll see you both in a few weeks."

"We will. Alright, our meters are about to run out, so we should all head." He nodded behind them. "The campus meter maid has been ogling us for the past fifteen minutes. We'll talk to you two soon."

And with that, they all got in their cars and headed their separate ways – Gertie to pick up Tapeworm and Cody and Bailey towards the interstate back to Boston.

__Boston__

At the same time, Zack had just finished his Fundamentals of Food Service Management final, and was on his way to meet Maya for their final lunch together on campus for the semester. And when he got to the student cafeteria, he dropped into the seat across from her and exhaled.

"That bad, huh?"

He sighed. "No, it actually wasn't. I'm just sick of looking at all of this material. I'll be so glad when my stats final is over tomorrow afternoon."

She smiled at him. "Trust me. I know the feeling. I'm not looking forward to my college algebra test tomorrow either, but I keep reminding myself that when its done, I'll be done for about a month. And unlike you, I still have to pack my stuff tomorrow afternoon."

"So...you're heading back to New York then?"

Maya nodded. "That's the plan. I figure I haven't seen my folks since early this past summer. They keep telling me how much they miss seeing me."

He nodded. "Well, if you want, stop by the hotel on your way out of town. I have a Christmas gift for you there."

"I have one for you too." She grinned. "But you have to promise me you won't open it until Christmas morning."

He smiled back. "Deal...as long as you do the same with what I got you." He paused. "You know...I still have the mask you sent me last year. I tried it on once to see if it was like the one in that Jim Carrey movie, but nothing happened..."

Maya laughed. "Sorry about that..."

Zack shrugged. "No big deal. But, I have to admit that I actually really did like it. I thought it was pretty cool."

"I'm glad." She paused and smiled again. "I almost forgot. I found out this morning that you won't be the only one who will be working while going to school next year!"

"Oh yeah? You got a job? And I mean a real one that doesn't involve sitting at a desk in the lobby of your dorm?"

She laughed. "Yes, I did. I was over at the Fitness & Rec Center on campus for a class last week, and they had a sign posted saying they were looking for people to teach children's beginning swimmer classes. Since I'm a certified life guard, they interviewed me, and I found out this morning that I was hired."

"Congratulations then." He smiled. "Take it from personal experience...working with little kids is a lot harder than it looks"

Maya laughed. "Thanks, I'll remember that. And based on my preliminary schedule for next semester, I'll be teaching sessions on Monday, Wednesday and Friday afternoons." She paused. "I just need to fit in a class that covers my humanities requirement on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons and I'll be done with my schedule."

Zack sighed. "I need to do the same thing. I lucked out in getting my three hospitality administration classes on Monday, Wednesday and Friday afternoons again. But I have to find a humanities class that meets on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons too."

Maya lit up. "Maybe we can find one to take together? It'll be like old times!"

"Maybe. We'll have to see if there is one we can both agree on. It would be nice to have someone I know in a class again. That's why Beacon Hill was kind of fun. I had Amanda in some classes together with me."

Maya paused. "She seems like a real nice girl."

"She is. She's great. We have a lot in common with both of us having overachieving twin siblings."

"I see..."

Zack nodded. "That's why I hope it works out for her and her ex-boyfriend. She deserves to be happy, and from what I've met of him so far, he's not the jerk I initially thought he was..."

Inwardsly, Maya felt like jumping up and dancing with joy. "Well, I hope it works out for them too. But, of course, you know I have an ulterior motive for that..."

Zack laughed. "Oh, I'm well aware of that." He decided to change the subject. "So, with one semester under your belt, you think you're going to enjoy studying athletic training?"

"I do. Actually, after this semester, I've already made a decision."

"What's that?"

"Well, BU offers a six year program where I not only would get a BS in athletic training but also a doctorate in physical therapy. I think I'm going to do that. It will require some summer classes, but I think if I take other summer classes, I might be able to graduate in five and a half. So, it looks like I'm going to be around Boston full time for the next several years. The fitness & rec center will even let me work there over the summer too while I take classes."

Zack paused and was a little surprised to find out how pleased he was to hear that. "Good for you." He paused again and laughed. "You'll be a doctor...Cody is going to be a doctor...Bailey is going to be a doctor. I'll be surrounded by doctors!"

Maya laughed. "I guess so. And you'll still just be Mr. Martin."

He had to nod. "Yeah, but you aren't the only who has thought about extending their education some..."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah. Its kind of weird. I didn't think I would know anything in some of my classes, but I guess living on a cruise ship for three years and in a hotel for almost five, I've picked up things without realizing it. I guess I should have when Cody and I put on our own private teen club when we were younger and when Woody and I kind of took over the ship while everyone else was off in Kettlecorn. Anyways, I'm thinking of sticking around and going for my MBA. Normally, it would take two years, but with me working too, I wouldn't be able to take a full load each semester. But by taking lighter course loads and maybe a summer class, I think I could do it in two and a half years."

Maya smiled. "Which would have us both theoretically graduating at the same time. I think you should go for it, Zack. I know you can do it."

"You really think so?"

"Yeah, I do. What has everyone else said about you thinking about doing this?"

"Actually, you're the first person I've told about it. I'm pretty sure if I told Moseby, Mom or Cody, they'd all faint from shock."

She smiled. "Maybe, but you know they'd be behind you 100% too."

"Yeah, I know they would." He checked his watch and sighed. "Unfortunately, I need to head home and get back to studying. I think I can handle this for 24 more hours..."

Maya checked her watch too. "Same here. I have a full day of studying left to do. But I will stop by the hotel tomorrow to see you before I head back to New York."

Zack was about to leave when Maya saying New York caused him to remember something. He debated whether to even mention, but he realized he was being silly. "Speaking of New York, Marcus has invited me, Cody and Bailey down for New Year's out in Times Square. If you'd want to join us..."

The biggest grin broke out on Maya's face. "Just give me a call once you guys get in town. I'll be there."

__Atlanta Hartsfield International Airport__

It was now December 22, and Cody and Bailey were a third of their way through their journey back to Kettlecorn. They still had to fly on to Wichita and then pick up their rental car that would take them the rest of the way. It was getting close to seven thirty that evening, and their connecting flight to Wichita should be boarding soon. That would get them into Wichita at about 9:00 central time, and by the time they got their bags and rental car, into Kettlecorn around midnight.

As they sat in the terminal waiting for their flight to be called, Cody was playing Angry Birds on his cell phone while Bailey was finishing up a phone call with her Mom. When she hung up, she turned to Cody and smiled.

"I told Mom we'd probably be in around midnight. And I went ahead and told them to go on to bed and that we'd see them in a morning. I mean, I do have a key to the front door, so no big deal, right?"

Cody nodded. "Good idea." He paused and smiled. "But will your Dad still expect us to be up at the crack of dawn?"

Bailey laughed. "I hope not. I normally wouldn't mind, but getting in after midnight plus jet lag would cause a very early morning. I think they'll let us sleep in a little before we have to get up to go to church in the morning."

"You know, I'm actually really looking forward to heading back to Kettlecorn. I've come to think of it as my third home. You know, with Boston and New Haven being the first two."

She smiled at him. "Good. I'm glad you do, because I want it to be another home for you. Just like I feel like Boston is another home for me."

"And I've missed seeing Porkers too." He paused and grinned. "And I have to admit I'm curious to see how the chickens react to me this year. I wonder if they remember me from last Christmas..."

"I bet you they will. They may have small brains, but they aren't stupid. After last year, you're the new grim reaper to them..."

He teased her. "Trying to tell me what my Halloween costume for next year will be?"

She laughed. "Not quite. You set the bar high this year with Gomez and Morticia Addams. I'm going to have to think long and hard to find something to top those."

"Well, I'm glad you liked those. Like Peter Pan and Tinkerbails was your back up last year, my back up this year was Frankenstein's monster and his bride."

Bailey laughed again. "That would have been a sight." She paused and teased him. "Though, the boots would have been one way to get you over six feet tall..."

Cody groaned. "I was so close at my physical last spring. Five feet eleven and three quarters. A quarter inch, Bails! A quarter inch!"

She closed her eyes and laid her head on his shoulder. "Its okay, Sweetie. It doesn't matter to me how tall you are. Besides, I still remember when I had to slouch when I was taller than you..."

He laughed. "Not my fault that girls mature faster than boys. But, you have to admit, once I did pass you, I kept on going."

"I know you did. And I'm glad you did. Because right now, we fit just perfect with my head on your shoulder and your arm around me."

Cody leaned down and kissed the top of her head. "Yeah, we do." He looked out the window and sighed in contentment. Well, he did until he noticed something that didn't make sense to him.

"Boo boo?"

"Yeah, Cody Bear?"

"We're in Atlanta, and Atlanta is considered to be in the deep south, right?"

"Yeah...Why do you ask?"

He nodded towards the window. "I didn't know it ever snowed this hard down south."

Bailey opened her eyes and saw a practical blizzard outside. "Oh my gosh..."

But before Cody could say anything else, they both heard the intercom turn on.

_"___May we have your attention please. Due to inclement weather, all flights departing Atlanta Hartsfield Airport have been grounded. We apologize for the delay and will do our best to get everyone on their planes and on to their destinations as soon as possible. Thank you, and we apologize for any inconveniences."__

Cody and Bailey just looked at each other and groaned.

"Cody?"

"Yeah, Bails?"

"Why do I have a feeling this is going to be a very long night?"

__To be Continued...__

__**AN: Just a reminder to everyone. This is Episode 13. So, Season 2 is now half over. With that being said, just remember I have 12 more episodes in this season to fill for those thinking I might be wrapping up a certain story arc anytime soon. But, there is good news. With UK being off until next Saturday, I should have more time this week to get some writing done.**


	14. Holiday Traditions

_Episode 14_

__"Holiday Traditions"__

__I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did.__

__Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them.__

__Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves.__

__And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so...__

__Kettlecorn__

It was about six o'clock the next morning, and Clyde, Eunice, Grammy and Bailey's sisters were all just sitting down to have breakfast before doing their morning chores before church. Once everyone was seated and filling their plates, Grammy turned to Eunice.

"Any idea when Bailey and Cody are supposed to be here?"

Eunice set down a bowl of scrambled eggs on the table after scooping some on to her plate. "Well, Bailey called back last night and said their flight had been delayed due to a freak blizzard. She said if they heard anything about when they would finally get to board before we went to bed, she'd call us back. But I haven't heard anything from her since then."

But that's when Bailey's next youngest sister, Sophie, spoke up after swallowing a mouth full of grits. "I actually had a text from her waiting on me when I woke up this morning. It was from about twelve thirty. She said they were just about to board their plane then."

Eunice nodded as she began doing the math in her head. "Which means they should be here at any..." But before she could finish what she was going to say, everyone heard the front door open. A few minutes later, a very tired and ragged looking Cody and Bailey walked into the kitchen.

With the exhaustion heavy in her voice, Bailey smiled and spoke. "We're finally here..."

And with that, everyone got up to hug them and welcome them back home. But seeing the state of disarray they were in, Clyde couldn't help but laugh.

"You two look like something the cat drug in..."

Cody nodded. "Sounds about like how we feel. Its been a really long night..."

"So, what all happened exactly?"

Eunice interrupted them. "First, take off your coats and sit down."

Bailey and Cody did as they were told and were grateful to be sitting down again. And once they were, Bailey began telling everyone their adventure of the past twelve hours.

"Like I told you last night, a freak snowstorm basically shut down Atlanta's airport. And that's a big deal considering its one of the busiest airports in the world. So, our flight that was supposed to depart about 8:15 last night was delayed. And for the longest time, they had no idea when any planes would be able to take off as visibility was next to nothing and they had to continue to deice the wings."

Cody continued for her. "So, we were basically stuck in the airport to wait it out when we began getting pretty tired. So, a little before one o'clock eastern time, we each took one of those five hour energy shots to keep us awake. We didn't want to risk falling asleep and missing our flight. Naturally, not more than twenty minutes after we had done that, they announced our flight was about to board. That's when Bailey sent Sophie a text. Once on board, our plan was to try to get some sleep during our flight..."

Bailey sighed. "But the energy shots we took left us both too wired to get any sleep on the plane. We finally landed in Wichita about three o'clock this morning central time, and by the time we got our luggage and rental car, it was close to four o'clock. We stopped at a 24 hour gas station there and each got the biggest cappuccino they had and began driving here. Unfortunately, we had to turn the heater off and crack the windows because all the warm air was causing us to get drowsy. A two hour drive late, and here we are..."

Eunice smiled and shook her head. "You two must be absolutely exhausted then since you haven't slept in probably twenty-four hours. Eat some breakfast and then you two can crash. I'm sure the preacher will understand you two not going this morning after we explain what happened."

Bailey looked up at her. "You sure, Momma? Give us a chance to shower and freshen up, and we'll be ready."

"I'm sure. You two would end up passing out there on the pew." She laughed. "Besides, its already takes all I have to keep your father awake during the sermon. Keeping all three of you from snoring would be an impossible task."

Cody laughed too. "You might be right about that."

"So, you two just fill your bellies and then you get some rest."

"I appreciate that, Eunice. I have to warn you though. Those energy shots should be wearing off any time now. We could both pass out right into our plates and literally have egg on our faces..."

Eunice laughed. "Well, we'd just lift up your heads up and wipe you off. Now, everyone eat up. We've got a lot to do this morning and time is a wasting!"

A couple of hours later, all of the chores were done, and everyone had cleaned up for church. When they headed downstairs to leave, they all just looked at the scene on the couch in front of them. Seems Cody and Bailey had only made it to the couch and kicked off their shoes before exhaustion over took them. Both were asleep side by side on the couch with Cody spooning Bailey with his arm around her holding her close.

Everyone thought it was an adorable sight - well, almost. Seeing the sight in front of him caused Clyde's eyebrows to raise and a frown form on his face. But before he could say or do anything, Grammy Pickett swatted his shoulder.

"Don't even think about it, Clyde. You leave them be just like they are. I think its very sweet. Besides, they'll both turn 20 years old next year. They aren't children any longer. They're both adults with good heads on their shoulders. Besides, do I have to remind you of the things I caught you and Eunice doing when you were younger than they are now?"

Eunice blushed, but Clyde began hemming and hawing. "But Momma..."

Grammy smiled at him. "I didn't say anything then because I knew you two loved each other and were happy. I expect you to do the same for them!"

Clyde sighed. "But Eunice and I were engaged then..."

"So? Do you not remember last Christmas and the promise ring he gave her? Son, they are as close to being engaged as they can be without already being so. And as I remember, you've already given Cody you're blessing to ask her when he's ready..."

He sighed and shook his head. "I hate it when you use my own words against me..."

She laughed. "I know. Just remember. No matter what, Bailey will always be your little girl. But you have to face facts that you are no longer the main man in her life anymore. I had to learn to accept that I wasn't the main woman in your life anymore either. But we both got lucky. You chose a good woman in Eunice, and Bailey's chosen a good man in Cody. Instead of being upset about it, you should be happy..."

__Boston__

While Cody and Bailey were done with their adventures with an airport, Zack found himself entering Boston's Logan Airport himself. But instead of going somewhere, he was there to pick someone up. About five o'clock that afternoon, his charge walked into the baggage claim area and began scanning the crowd there. And once she saw Zack, she headed straight to him and engulfed him in a hug.

"Zack! So good to see you again, Honey!"

He smiled as he hugged her back. "So good to see you again too, Mimi."

She pulled back and grinned. "I understand a lot has changed in your life since I last saw you."

Zack nodded. "Its true. I'm at Boston University now with a definite path for my future."

Mimi smiled at him again. "I know that, Dear, and I couldn't be more proud of you. But that's not what I'm talking about. I've spoken to your mother and gotten Cody's e-mails. I know that Maya girl is now back in your life again."

"Oh..."

"Sounds like you and I need to go something hot to drink again and talk about it. Come on, lets get my bags, and we'll go have another one of our chats."

An hour later, Mimi and Zack were sitting in a Starbucks sipping on hot drinks.

Mimi laughed. "You would think once I left Seattle, I'd finally get away from these places."

Zack laughed too. "I don't think its possible. They're everywhere. We even have one on campus..."

"I swear they are like rabbits. You turn your head, and there are about ten more when you turn back." She shook her head. "Anyways, lets get back to what we came here to talk about."

"Maya..."

Mimi nodded. "Exactly. Now, from what I've been told, you two have been spending a lot of time together lately."

Zack sighed. "I know. It doesn't make any sense to me, and as much as I've tried, I can't explain it. I told her that we could try being friends again, but even I didn't know if that was possible. But now several months later, its almost like we're back to the way we were before. Well, you know...except for some things."

She smiled. "I don't think I need to know what those things are, but I'm pretty sure they are things that friends usually don't do with each other. Anyways, I wish I could meet her while I was in town. I like to think I'm a pretty good judge of character when it comes to the people my loved ones get involved with. I've been right about all of your Mom and Aunt Martha's boyfriends being duds. I was right about Bailey being perfect for your brother. I was right about your father..."

"Mimi..."

She held up her hands. "I'm just saying my track record has been pretty good. But having not met her, I can only go by what you and others have told me." She paused. "So, all I can say is...follow your heart."

Zack rolled his eyes. "Everyone tells me that. Its like that's the only piece of advice anyone knows."

Mimi smiled. "Because its good advice. Zack, its like I told you last year. You're heart won't lead you astray. Beyond that, no one else can tell you what to do...even me. But, I think its time you tell me more about her."

Zack paused and thought of Maya. And without him realizing it, a smile broke out across his face. Mimi caught it immediately.

"I saw that!" She laughed. "Wow! This one must be quite something to cause you to have a goofy grin on your face like that. I've never known you to do that before."

"Mimi, she's different than other girls I've ever known. I don't know if I can explain it. I mean, back before all of this happened, we got along so well. I couldn't wait to be with her, and I missed her when she wasn't around. I even broke into the VIP section of a club just to get her an autograph of her favorite tennis player to make her feel better when she was sick..."

"And now?"

He shrugged. "I don't know. I used to think the connection we had was gone for good."

"But now, you aren't so sure, are you?"

"No, I'm not. In fact, if I'm honest, I know its still pretty strong. But, Mimi, she was the first girl I really put myself out there all the way with without holding anything back, and I got burnt."

"And you're afraid it will happen again. That's completely understandable, Dear. But at the same time, do you think its possible she's also learned from this whole mess too?"

He sighed again. "I'd like to think so, but how can I be for sure?"

She smiled at him. "You can't. Somethings in life, we can never be absolutely sure about. In those times, we have to take a risk and have faith that we're doing the right thing."

__Kettlecorn__

On Christmas morning, Cldye, Eunice, Grammy, Sophie, Daphne, Amy, Bailey and Cody were all sitting around the Christmas tree opening their Christmas gifts. When it was Bailey's turn again, Cody placed a rectangular box in her lap.

"Hear you go, Boo Boo. Another one from me."

Bailey smiled at him before opening the present. And when she finally got it open, she pulled out a Red Sox jersey with the name 'BAILEY' and the number '40' on the back. She turned to Cody. "Sweetie, I love it, but why did you choose the number '40'?"

Cody grinned. "I didn't. That's a replica jersey of the Sox new closer, Andrew Bailey. Once the A's traded him to Boston last winter, I knew I was going to get you one of his jerseys."

She laughed. "Ahhh...I got you now." She leaned in and kissed his cheek. "Well, I love it, Cody. Thank you."

He handed her another box. "But I think you'll love this one even more..."

She smiled at him again before beginning to rip into the wrapping paper on that one. Finding a shoe box underneath, she opened the lid, and her eyes went wide when she saw what was inside.

"Cody! You remembered!" And with that, she held up her new boots to show everyone.

He smiled at her. "Of course I did. I remembered you trying them on and how much you loved them. When you wouldn't buy them for yourself, I simply bought them for you."

She leaned over and kissed him. "Thank you, Honey. I love them, but not as much as I love you. Thank you for such a wonderful Christmas. You got me the book and smart phone I wanted and the jersey plus these. You're the absolute best!"

"Well, I just wanted to make you happy. And while we waited for forever in the Atlanta airport, I talked to the guy at the cell phone kiosk there, and he said he could activate your new phone for you and transfer over your phone book during our next layover there. And you can read your book on the flight back while I'll order a book on my new kindle you bought me and read right next to you."

Bailey smiled. "I love you even more, now. I hope you like what I got you too."

"Of course I do! I've been wanting a kindle since I first saw them, and you got me exactly the one I want. And you must have remembered me looking at that coat I really wanted too." He smiled. "You must have been buying it while I was buying your boots..."

"Probably so. Because we pay attention and listen to each other." She grinned. "Besides, you looked extremely handsome in it."

"Like you will in your boots." He paused and smiled again. "How about you put them on, I'll put my coat on and we'll go for a walk outside to try them out."

Bailey paused and looked at him. "A walk outside on Christmas morning? Are you sure about that?"

Cody laughed. "Don't worry. I don't have another surprise ring to give you this morning. I'm still searching for the perfect one for you, but I haven't found it yet."

"Actually, that wasn't what I had in mind. I just remember what else happened last year when we did that."

"What are the odds of that happening again?" He leaned in and whispered. "Besides, I haven't had any alone time with you since we've been here. Well, except for us passing out next to each other..."

She smiled and whispered back. "That is true. Alright, lets do it."

Fifteen minutes later, they were both wearing their respective gifts from each other as they headed out the front door. And as they walked along side by side holding hands, they continued to talk.

Cody just shook his head. "I swear, the more I'm here, the more the weather here confuses me."

Bailey laughed. "I told you it would."

"Its just weird. Yeah, its cold outside here, but there isn't any snow here while Atlanta got hit with a blizzard."

She teased him. "Maybe we should take a meteorology class so we can figure it out?"

He smiled back at her. "Well, it won't be next semester. That was one perk of being stranded in Atlanta for hours with nothing to do. We went to the Yale schedule of classes, and we found one that should work perfect for us." He paused. "Well, five classes for sure, and we'll find out if we can take the sixth one in a few days..."

"That's right! They'll post those students accepted into the Ethics, Politics & Economics program on its website on New Year's Eve." She smiled. "Cody, I still don't think we have anything to worry about."

"I hope so, Bails. I..."

Cody was about to finish his thought when they were interrupted by someone appearing right in front of them in the middle of the path.

"Well, well. If it ain't the little feller and the girl too good for Kettlecorn."

Cody shook his head and turned to Bailey. "I was mistaken. The odds of this happening were pretty good."

__Boston__

On Christmas morning, Zack, Carey and Mimi were once again sitting around the kitchen table in Carey's suite having breakfast after they had exchanged gifts. And as as they ate, they were reflect back and talk about their morning.

"So, did have another good Christmas, Zack?"

He smiled. "Yeah, Mimi, I did. I guess I'm getting older and starting appreciate things I need over things I want. I never thought I'd be happy to get more dress socks and underwear"

"So...you're not disappointed that you didn't get a new video game this year?"

He laughed. "Nah...Besides, I still have a gift coming from Cody and Bailey who might have gotten me another game I want."

Carey shook her head and laughed too. "I guess we'll find out when they get back on Saturday night. Hopefully they don't have anymore bad weather and adventures with their flights." She smiled. "And Zack, I love the 'Proud Boston University Mom' sweatshirt you got me. I'll alternate wearing it with my Yale one."

Mimi nodded. "And I'll do the same with mine. I'll be proud to rock them out as you young people say. And I hope Cody and Bailey's flight doesn't have any issues either. I can't wait to see them both again." She turned to Zack and smiled. "So, speaking of other gifts, will there be any deliveries to you this morning?"

Zack's eyes went wide. "Oh my gosh! I can't believe I forgot. Maya dropped off her gift for me at the end of last week before she headed back to New York. I have it across the hall in my room."

"Well, go get it and see what it is!"

Zack jumped up to run to get it. When he returned a few minutes later, he was carrying a gift bag topped off with tissue paper. He began ripping the paper out and looked down into the bag. And when he saw what was inside, he just smiled and shook his head.

"What is it, Honey?"

Zack pulled out the contents. One was a top of the line wireless head set. Another was the new wireless controller had had been drooling over. And the final one was a gift card for a year's gold subscription to be able to use his Z-Box's online capabilites.

"I can't believe she got me all of this. This is awesome!"

Mimi just looked at everything in confusion. "Ummm...what is it?"

Zack just kept smiling as he explained what everything was to his mother and grandmother. They just looked at each other and shrugged.

"I can't believe she remembered talking about this. I had told her that Woody and Marcus had been playing games online together and had invited me to join them, but I kept forgetting to sign up got it. So, I guess she got it for me instead. I need to call them and tell them I'm in now!"

Mimi just sat there smiling knowingly. "I think before you do, there is another phone call you should make first..."

Zack looked up at her. "You're right, Mimi. I'm going to call Maya right now and thank her."

He headed across the hall to his suite so he would have some privacy. And Maya picked up on the second ring.

_"___Hey, Zack! Merry Christmas!"__

"Merry Christmas to you too. I was calling to thank you for the Christmas gift. I can't believe you remembered that."

_"___You're welcome. I got my own subscription as well, so I expect to be invited in when you guys get online together."__

He laughed. "Consider it done. And we should be able to do pretty well without Cody there holding us back."

__She laughed too. "Yeah, I have to admit that he was pretty bad. Anyways, I need to thank you for what you got me too. I can't believe a die hard Patriots fan like you had the nerve to actually buy an Eli Manning Jersey and Giants pajama pants."__

"I won't lie. It felt very wrong to buy them, and I did get dirty looks from the cashier when I did. I think he was questioning my fanhood."

_"Well, I love them. Thank you so much for them. And I'm taking you with me when I use the BW3s gift card. I need someone with me who loves chicken wings as much I do."_

"Just let me know when..." He paused as he realized he didn't know what else to say. "I should let you go though so you can get back to your family. I'm sure you want to spend as much time with them as possible."

__Maya sighed. "I should do the same for you. Merry Christmas again, and I'll see you next Monday here in New York."__

Zack just nodded. "Yeah...I'll see you then."

__Kettlecorn__

Cody and Bailey both were shaking their heads at having to encounter Moose once again. But Cody remembered their encounter from last year and what Bailey had said to her grandmother later, and he wasn't about to back down. So, he smirked at Moose.

"Are you going to be waiting outside for us every Christmas morning? I will give you credit for at least having the decency to not jump me from behind again."

Moose smirked back at him. "No, I was not waiting for you two. Actually, I was on my way to Betty Lou's house to spend time with her and her family."

Bailey rolled her eyes. "Who didn't see that coming? Anyways, from now on, refrain from using my family's property as a shortcut. After what you did last year, Daddy has said you aren't welcome around here anymore. If he catches you on the family property, he won't hesitate to shoot you as a trespasser."

Moose just glared at her. "You've got to be kidding me, right? I've been cutting through everyone's property around here since I was knee high to a grasshopper!"

"Well, as time goes by, things change..."

He just looked at her again. "They certainly have. I can remember back when you weren't such a..."

But before he could finish what he was going to say, Cody narrowed his eyes and interrupted him. "I wouldn't finish what you were going to say if I were you, Moose."

Moose rolled his eyes. "And what are you going to do about it if I don't, Little Feller?"

"If you have a problem with me, fine. I don't care. But no one disrespects Bailey in my presence. If you try to do that again, I'll...I'll...well, I'll have to teach you a lesson in manners myself."

He laughed. "Bring it on then, Little Feller. I've been waiting a while to get some revenge on you for stealing Bailey away from me for a long time now."

Cody shook his head and took off his new coat. He handed it to Bailey and smiled. "Hold this for me, please, Sweetie. I don't want to get any of his blood on it."

Bailey just looked at Cody with a worried expression on her face. "Cody...You don't have to do this. I don't care what he says about me either. Lets just go back to the house and forget we ever ran into him."

Moose laughed. "Yeah, turn around and run away, little feller!"

Cody smiled at Bailey again before turning his attention back to Moose. "I'm not running anywhere. And for the record, I didn't steal Bailey away from you. She is a bright, beautiful lady who is capable of making her own decisions about what she wants for her life. I'm thankful everyday that one of the decisions she has made is to love me and want to be with me. Now, she has done nothing to you in the least, and she certainly doesn't deserve any disrespect from you. From now on, I expect you to treat her with the respect that she deserves." He crouched into a karate stance. "If you refuse to, you will suffer my wrath."

Moose just looked at him in confusion. "What are you doing, Little Feller?"

Cody just grinned. "Oh, I forgot to mention I'm a black belt in karate. This is my attack stance I use when I'm preparing for battle. And after my brother I defeated a large group of ninjas by ourselves, whipping you should be a piece of cake."

Moose just shook his head. "Its true. Big city folk are all crazy..."

Cody had a crazy look in his eye. "Yeah, we are. So, the ball's in your court. We going to do this or are you going to apologize to Bailey and leave her family's property? I'm really hoping you choose to do this the fun way..."

Moose just looked at him and pause. "Well..."

Cody made a flinch and Moose jumped back in alarm. "Fine! I'll go the other way! And Bailey, I'm sorry if I've shown you any disrespect..." And with that, Moose turned and hightailed it out of there.

As he did, Cody just shook his head and laughed. He turned to see Bailey was looking at him with an expression on her face he couldn't quite figure out.

"Bails?"

She closed her eyes and shook her head. "What was that? I never knew you were a black belt in karate!"

Cody kept smiling. "Because I'm not. I took a few lessons years ago, and know one move that I've told you about before. But, that was my plan. I know I'm not a black belt, you know I'm not a black belt, but Moose didn't know that. Now, the story about Zack, me and the ninjas is true, but even I can't explain how we did that. But, I just decided to even up the distinct size advantage he has over me by playing mind games with him. As you can see, it worked!"

Bailey sighed. "But what if it hadn't worked?"

He shrugged. "Then, I would have done what I had to do. Boo Boo, I meant what I said when I said no one disrespects you with me around. As your feller, its my job to defend your honor."

"I appreciate that, Sweetie. I do. But I don't want you to get in fights over me."

Cody smiled again. "I'm not going looking for them, but I won't back down if I'm left no choice. I just want you to know I'm capable of taking care of you."

Bailey smiled. "Cody, I already knew you were."

He paused. "That's not what you told you're grandmother this summer while we were here. You told her I wasn't the most physically intimidating person in the world..."

She was confused. "What are you talking about? I..." She paused as it dawned on her, and she began laughing as she shook her head. "Cody, you misunderstood what I said. I've never had any doubts that you could take care of me. I was telling Grammy that I was afraid Moose might do another sneak attack on you. I was worried that he would try it again but maybe have a weapon on him that time. The death stares he was giving me while we were at lunch scared me, and I was afraid of what he might try next. He just proved he thought you had wronged him. Sweetie, in a fair fight, I know you would give it everything you had. And win or lose, I would love you and be proud of you. I never want you to doubt that." She leaned in and kissed him before smiling. "Besides, I think he's now afraid of you..."

"You really think so? I..." He paused, and his face went pale as he realized what exactly he had just done. "Wait a minute! I think my adrenaline rush is wearing off!" He swallowed. "I almost got in a fight for the second time in my life. I was bluffing, and I would have been in serious trouble if he had called me on it. I could have been hurt or even worse..."

Bailey just smiled and looped her arm with his. "Come on, Cody Bear. Lets get you back to the house. I think you've had enough excitement for this morning already..."

__To be Continued...__

**AN: I've been receiving a lot of reviews for NKOTB and KTHFB recently. Once again, those stories are on hiatus right now due to writer's block. I will get back to them eventually, but with working full time now, I don't have as much time to write like I used to. So, I've been concentrating on this story as ideas for it are coming to me a whole lot easier. But again, I will get back to the others at some point.**__  
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	15. Lest Old Acquaintances Be Forgotten

_Episode 15_

__"_Lest Old Acquaintances Be Forgotten"_

__I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did.__

__Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them.__

__Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves.__

__And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so...__

__Boston__

The next Saturday was the 29th of December, and that meant it was time for Cody and Bailey's week long visit in Kettlecorn to come to a close. They would have liked to have stayed longer, but they had to be in New York City on the 31st. To make matters better, unlike the previous year, they had gotten a flight back to Boston that wouldn't leave them completely worn out when they arrived. Besides, with the experience they had with their flight in to Wichita, they were anxious to spend as little time in an airport as possible. Heading back, their departing flight would leave Wichita at 3:00 local time which meant they would have to leave Kettlecorn by 11:30 that morning at the latest to give them time make the drive, return their rental car, check in and get through security. And after saying goodbye to the Pickett family, they were on the road by a quarter after eleven. By two o'clock, they were sitting in the terminal waiting for their fight to be called. Unfortunately, flying back east, they lost an hour, so it was a little after 7:00 eastern time when they touched down in Atlanta. But, like Cody had said, Bailey was able to get her phone activated and contact list transferred over while they waited while Cody found a book he to order that he wanted to read. An hour and a half later, they were air bound again and landed in Boston about eleven thirty that night. They were expecting Zack to pick them up, and they were hoping to get back to the hotel by midnight so they could call it a night.

But those plans changed when they saw Zack wasn't alone in at the baggage claim area. Instead, Mimi was there with him. And once they saw her, both ran over to give her a hug.

"Mimi!"

She smiled. "Good to see you again too, Cody!" Once she broke the hug with him, she turned to give Bailey one too. "And good to see you as well, Bailey! I swear I think you get prettier every time I see."

Cody grinned. "Because she does..."

Bailey just shook her head and smiled at Mimi. "Thank you. I appreciate that, Mimi. But ignore Cody though. I think he's a little biased."

Mimi smiled and laughed. "Oh, I know he is. But, the way he does it, he reminds me so much of his grandfather, so I let it slide. How was your trip back to Kansas?"

"It was good to be back home for a week, but I'm glad to be back now. I love Kettlecorn, but I guess I've gotten used to living in the big city now."

"Well, I'm sure Boston is happy to have you back as well. I know the rest of us are."

Cody sighed. "I just wish we were going to be back for longer than a day before we turn around and leave for New York. I wanted to spend more time with you, Mimi."

She smiled at him. "Oh, I'll be here when you get back. I know you guys are planning on heading back to New Haven on the Saturday the 12th. So, I decided to stay in Boston until Friday the 11th. So, we'll have plenty of time to spend time together and catch up once you all get back."

Cody smiled. "That's wonderful news, Mimi."

"Well, I can't blame you all for wanting to spend New Year's Eve in Times Square. Its something everyone should experience at least once in their lives."

Bailey spoke up. "Have you, Mimi?"

She laughed as she reminisced. "Oh yeah...Zack and Cody's grandfather and I experienced it back when were weren't much older than you all are now..." She paused. "You know...back when Dick Clark was still 100% real and still had all of his actual hair."

Zack just looked at his grandmother in surprise. "I just can't picture you ever doing anything like that, Mimi."

"Well, Zack...I wasn't always your grandmother. I've had a full life where I've seen a lot of things and had my share of my own adventures." She smiled. "Now, I never spent three years on a cruise ship or done some of the other things I've heard you've all got into, but still..."

Bailey smiled. "You'll have to tell us some stories then, Mimi."

"Well, we'll have plenty of time for that later, Dear. Right now, I'm sure you two have seen enough of the inside of an airport to last you for a long, long time. Lets get you two back to the hotel, and we'll have breakfast tomorrow together."

"Sounds good to us. We'll have to show you the pictures of Cody and I from this past Halloween. Since you loved the ones of us last year, I know you'll love these too."

Mimi laughed. "I bet I will. What did you two go as?"

Cody grinned. "Gomez and Morticia Addams."

Mimi kept laughing, but Zack just smirked back and forth at Cody and Bailey. "Which one of you was which? You know, Codester...it wouldn't be the first...or second time you would have worn a dress."

Cody rolled his eyes. "I was Gomez thank you very much."

Zack just shook his head and laughed. "No offense, Bro, but of the Addams brothers, I'm more of the Gomez type."

Cody just smiled. "I don't think so, Zack, and I know of three reasons that support that its actually me who is more that type."

"Yeah? What are those?"

"One, Gomez was the younger brother just like I am. Two..." He took Bailey's hand and kissed it. "I'm the one who has his very own Cara Mia..."

This time, Zack rolled his eyes. "And what's the third reason?"

Cody just grinned. "Because thanks to London's mirror, we know which one of us will have a full head of hair and a mustache and which one of us will be balding when we're older..."

__New York City__

After spending the 30th hanging out with Carey and Mimi and having a delayed second Christmas in Boston, Zack, Cody and Bailey had their bags packed and were ready to head out to New York City early on New Year's Eve morning. And since they knew they had a four hour drive ahead of them, they wanted to be on the road by 9 AM. Of course, when it came to who was driving, their was a disagreement. Zack had popped the trunk of his car when Cody looked over at him.

"What are you doing?"

"What's it look like I'm doing? I'm putting my bag in the trunk. Hand me both of your bags and I'll go ahead and put them in there too."

Cody frowned. "I thought we'd be taking our car. Its bigger, gets better mileage..."

Zack just smirked at him. "And with you driving, we might get there in time to see the street sweepers cleaning up the confetti. I remember how you drove that little car Dad gave us. Now, give me your bags. I'm driving."

Bailey put her hand on Cody's shoulder. "Its okay. It'll give me time to read more of my new book in the back seat." She smiled. "And I'll be more comfortable back there because I have shorter legs than you do."

He smiled back at her. "They may be shorter, but a whole lot prettier than mine..."

"Well, don't expect to see them tonight as we're going to be outside all night. I've packed my loose pants so I can wear my long johns underneath."

"Yeah, I brought mine too." He leaned in and kissed her. "Okay, lets get this show on the road."

A little over four hours and 230 miles later, Zack, Cody and Bailey were standing outside of Marcus' apartment door knocking on it. Several moments later, Marcus opened the door. Seeing who it was, he began grinning as he opened it wide.

"Come on inside, guys. Looks like we due for a chilly New Year's here in New York tonight."

Once inside, everyone saw Courtney sitting on the couch. And once she saw them, she immediately got up to hug both Cody and Bailey. Once she had, Marcus introduced her to Zack.

"And Court, this is the infamous Zack Martin I've told you all about."

She shook his hand and smiled. "Its good to finally meet you. After some of the stories Marcus and Cody have told me, I was beginning to wonder if you were actually real."

Zack laughed. "Oh, I'm real alright. And I've heard a lot about you too." He paused and leaned in. "I do have to ask...if Marcus here is blackmailing you into dating him, just tell us and we'll get you out of this mess."

Courtney laughed. "Nah, he's actually not so bad, so I put up with him."

Marcus rolled his eyes. "I can just feel the love." He turned to Zack. "So, when is Maya going to join us?"

"I just have to call her and let her known what the plan is exactly." He paused and looked around. "I have to say, Marcus. Your show must be killing it to have a place like this in New York City! This place is great!"

Marcus just laughed. "Well, I'm doing well, but I only pay $400 a month for this place."

That quickly got everyone's attention as they all just stared at him in surprise.

"Our dorms cost more a month than that! And you could fit at least four or five of them in here easy..."

Marcus just grinned. "What can I say? I was in the right place at the right time. Seems like there was this couple in their 70s who used to live here and had been for over fifty years. Living here for so long, this place has been rent controlled. Turns out, they were they were huge fans of mine. So, when they moved to Florida, I took over their lease here."

Zack shook his head. "You lucky son of a..."

"Oh please. I've heard all about your new place too. For eight months a year, you have an entire hotel suite to yourself that costs you nothing. So, don't be talking about me being lucky..."

"Fine. So, what is the plan for tonight?"

"Well, we have reservations at nice restaurant tonight." Marcus turned to Cody and Bailey. "You two will remember it as the place we went to on Valentine's Day."

Bailey smiled. "Sounds good to me. As I remember, it was delicious."

Courtney nodded. "Wasn't it? I love that place. Marcus and I still go there at least once a month or so..."

Marcus continued, but first he looked at Courtney. "Now, I know you don't like me using my connections too much, but I figured tonight was a good enough reason for an exception. In exchange for giving a quick interview with Carson Daly on air, they will be holding us six spots along the front rail in Times Square to watch the ball drop."

Cody nodded. "Sounds like a plan to us."

"Good. And then afterwards, we can come back here and continue to have fun...and probably thaw." He laughed. "I have a feeling we're going to freeze our butts off tonight!"

Zack shuddered. "Don't remind me. Thanks to Cody and Bailey talking about packing their long johns, I ran back up to my room to grab mine. Alright, when is our reservation?"

"7:30. Tell Maya to come over anytime before 6:00. With a group this big, we'll need that time to make sure we're all ready to go and to get to the restaurant."

So, Zack called Maya to give her the day's itinerary, and she said she'd be there by four o'clock. And at 3:57 afternoon, there was a knock at the door. Immediately once inside, Maya hugged Marcus and introduced herself to Courtney. And as Maya walked in, everyone could see she was already dressed for their evening out. She looked great yet warmly dressed at the same time. Zack found himself checking her out more than he realized, a fact not lost on the others. After just hanging out for a little while, everyone else began getting ready about five o'clock.

As Bailey began going through her bag she brought, she paused. She turned to look at Cody. "I'm still not sure I'm going to be warm enough tonight. I could have brought my camouflage that I wore in Sweden, but I didn't think it would be appropriate for tonight."

Cody stopped to think. "Well, I don't know if it would help, but I did bring an extra Under Armour Cold Gear long sleeve shirt. Its yours if you want it. And I brought an extra pair of flannel boxers. You can wear them over your long johns if you want."

She smiled and kissed him. "I mean it. You are the absolute best, Sweetie. I'd love to borrow them."

He shrugged. "You might as well keep them afterwards..." He smiled back at him. "After you wear them, they'll never want to be worn by me ever again..."

Bailey laughed and kissed him again. "Just remember. There's more like that waiting for you at midnight."

"I love New Years..."

By a quarter to six, everyone was dressed nice yet very warm and was ready to head out for the night. They were about to head out the door when Cody stopped dead in his tracks. He turned to Bailey. "I almost forgot! Its December 31st!"

Zack rolled his eyes. "Of course it is. We're here for New Year's Eve." He shook his head. "And they call him the smart twin..."

Cody ignored his brother. "Marcus, can we borrow your laptop and internet real quick? The Department of Ethics, Politics & Economics is posting their list of the applicants they've accepted in to the program today..."

Marcus laughed. "Sure. That's why I factored in extra time knowing we would need it for some reason or another. I've been around this group long enough to know better..."

Quickly, Cody and Bailey opened his laptop, and both stood their anxiously while Marcus logged in. Once he did, they practically pushed him out of the way to get at the computer.

Marcus just shook his head as he picked himself up off the floor. "Good thing I'm wearing so many layers to cushion my fall..."

But Cody and Bailey were focused on bringing up the EP&E website. When they did, the quickly clicked on the link to the list of newly accepted students. And once it came up, they quickly skimmed the list until they found both of their names on it. Turning to each other, they smiled and high fived each other.

"YES! We both got in! I told you we would, Cody Bear!"

"Yeah, we did. This is great news! Lets go celebrate!"

Zack sighed. "That's what we were going to do anyways before you stopped us..."

But Cody and Bailey were in too good of a mood to pay attention to what Zack said. They both felt on top of the world and were now in a mood to really celebrate. And to make things better, Marcus had rented a limo to drive them around town all night. Of course, that got him a look from Courtney, but he explained that it was a vehicle that they would all be able to fit in comfortably and that she'd be grateful when they had a guaranteed ride home later when everyone else was trying to catch a cab or use the drafty subway to get home. Begrudgingly, she acknowledged that he was probably right.

__The Restaurant __

Everyone was having a good time at the restaurant, and they had to all admit that the food was delicious. After eating, they were just sitting talking and having a good time. Besides, it was only nine o'clock, and they still had a couple of hours before Marcus had to make his brief appearance. And as they sat their having dessert and drinking cappuccinos, Zack and Cody both felt their heads jerk to the side as someone pulled them into a hug.

"Oh my gosh! Zack? Cody? Its really you!"

Once both were released from the headlocks they had been in, they turned around to see a brunette girl standing there smiling. She may have grown up and matured, but they both immediately recognized her.

"Max!"

Max smiled at them and laughed. "What are you two doing here in New York?"

Zack smiled. "New Year's Eve of course. Our buddy Marcus invited us down to experience Times Square."

She looked up to see Marcus, and her eyes went wide. "You...you...you're Lil' Little!"

Marcus smiled and stood up to shake her hand. "That's me. But everyone around here just calls me Marcus. Nice to meet you."

Max looked back to Zack. "How in the world do you know Lil' Little?"

He laughed and explained to her that everyone at the table except Courtney had gone to high school together at Seven Seas High.

Max just shook her head. "So...that's what happened to you guys. I had to go back to Boston a few years ago, and I tried to find you two and Tapeworm, but I couldn't find any of you anywhere. It was like you all had disappeared."

"It was like we disappeared? We could say the same thing about you!" Cody smiled. "Anyways, Tapeworm is actually my roommate at Yale now..." He went on to explain finding out they were roommates before updating her on what was new with him.

She smiled. "Good for him then. And Yale. I should have saw something like that happening for the both of you." She paused. "Though, my first guess would have been Harvard..."

Cody smirked. "Yeah, we can all blame Zack for that."

Max laughed again. "Good to see somethings haven't changed."

"And Max, I'd like to introduce you to my girlfriend and the love of my life, Bailey Pickett."

Bailey smiled and shook her hand. "Nice to meet you, Max. Cody's told me a lot about you and some of the adventures you all got into."

"Well, its an honor to meet you too, Bailey. If you willingly put up with Cody, you must be quite a woman."

Bailey laughed. "What can I say? I love him."

"Good for you. But for future reference, be careful if you are dancing with Cody. It can be quite the adventure..."

"Oh, I've heard all about that and seen the video of it..." Bailey winked at Cody. "But trust me, he's put in the time and effort to become a much, much better dancer since then..."

Zack spoke up. "And Max, this is Maya. She's...ummm...a friend of mine. She's originally from here in New York, but she goes to school at Boston University with me."

Max just looked at him. "You friends with a New Yorker?" She just shook her head. "Years ago, Zack hated all things New York. He even refused to shake hands with the Yankees when they stayed at the Tipton."

Maya smiled. "Well, I'm working to make sure he doesn't hate all things from New York. The Yankees, Giants, Jets, Rangers and Knicks I've long given up on trying to make a breakthrough though..."

Max laughed. "Probably a good idea. Well, I hope he adds me to the list of things from New York he doesn't hate too. I live here now."

Cody spoke up. "Yeah, we just found out a few weeks ago that you had transferred to the Fame high school. So, you're a full timer here in New York?"

"Yeah, I go to Juliard now. I'm chasing my dream of being a professional dancer." She decided to tease him. "And Cody, I don't care how much you've improved, you'll never be my dance partner again. Don't give up your day job and try to be a professional..."

He laughed and snapped his fingers. "Darn. I guess I'll have to fall back on my back up of medical school."

"I think you should..." She checked her watch. "Unfortunately, I have to get going. I'm in a performance later on tonight. When you're still struggling to make a name for yourself as you chase your dream, you have to take jobs that require you to work on New Year's Eve."

Marcus stood up again and handed her his business card. "Here. Take this. I have my own Broadway show here in New York. Even thought you willingly admit to being friends with these two, give me a call and I might be able to help you out with your dream."

Max smiled. "Thank you, I appreciate that." She turned to Zack and Cody. "Here, let me get both of your phone numbers so we can keep in touch."

After they exchanged numbers and Cody giving her Tapeworm's number too, she hugged them both again. "It was so good to see you both again. And I'm glad to see you both doing so well. Maybe this is a sign that 2013 is going to be a good year for me. Anyways, you two take care of yourselves."

"We will. You do the same."

She turned to Maya and Bailey. "And if you two don't mind, keep an eye on these two for me. They can both be pains in the butt, but..."

Maya smiled. "We completely understand."

Bailey nodded. "Consider them taken care of..."

"Good. Well, I'm off. I hope it won't be another..." She paused. "...another six years before I see you guys again..."

__Times Square__

While the crowd had long since filled Times Square, everyone was enjoying being in the roped off area the TV network had established. There, they could move around fairly easily and there was free hot chocolate for them to drink. While Marcus and Courtney were off doing his interview, everyone else just took it easy. Off to one side, Zack and Maya found a bench to sit down on.

"So, that was the infamous Max, huh?"

Zack nodded. "Yeah. Its crazy that we just ran into her like that." He paused and turned to her. "Did I tell you a lot about her?"

"Just that she was the first girl you ever kissed..."

He paused and began laughing. "More like she kissed me. Man, that was like seven or eight years ago, but it seems like a lifetime ago."

"Yeah?"

Zack nodded. "Yeah. She kissed me, and then our basketball team made me take her out on a date so it wouldn't ruin team chemistry. Of course it was there that she realized she made a mistake and just wanted to be friends."

Maya paused. "I guess I'm the opposite. I realized I made a mistake, but I want to be more than friends..."

He sighed. "I know. If you would have told me seven months ago that we'd be this close again, I would have thought you were crazy. But, I admit. I like having you back in my life, Maya."

She smiled. "Well, its a start."

"Yeah..." Zack paused and decided to change the subject. "So, have you been having fun being back in New York over break?"

"Yeah, I have..." She began shaking her head and laughing. "But the funny thing is, I'm ready to head back to Boston. I miss it. And as a self respecting New Yorker, I never thought I'd ever say that."

Zack laughed. "I'm going to remember you saying it though next year during the pennant stretch. So, when can you move back in to your dorm?"

Maya sighed. "Well, classes start back on Wednesday the 16th. The dorms open back on that Saturday before. So, I have almost two weeks before I can move back."

"That sucks."

"Tell me about it."

Zack paused and wondered why he was about to say what he was about to say. But before he knew it, it was out of his mouth. "Well, if you want to come up a few days early, you can always crash in our suite again."

Maya just looked at him in surprise. "Are you serious?"

He shrugged. "If you want. I mean, you'd have to hang out with Cody and Bailey during the day. They move back to New Haven on that Saturday too. And I start back to work the day after tomorrow."

"That's fine with me. It will give us time to find a humanities class we think we can handle. You sure they won't mind though?"

"I'm pretty sure. They'll probably be spending those days getting ready to head back. Besides, you'll get to meet my grandmother." He paused and remembered what Mimi had said about being a good judge of people. "I like for you to meet her..."

On the other side of the enclosure, Cody and Bailey found their own bench to sit back on and relax. He turned to her.

"Are you warm enough?"

She smiled and nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine. Thank you again for the shirt and boxers."

"You are very welcome."

"This has been kind of interesting day, huh? Not only did we both get into the EP&E program, you found out what happened to your friend Max. That's two questions you no longer have to wonder about."

Cody laughed. "Very true."

"Just think. We have a lot to do now. We have to schedule an appointment with the EP&E Director of Undergraduate Studies and begin planning our curriculum for the next two and a half years. And we need to..."

She was silenced by Cody kissing her. When he finally pulled back, she just looked at him. "Not that I'm complaining, but what was that for?"

He just smiled. "You were beginning to babble, and I figured if that worked on me, it might work on you too. We have the next week and a half to worry about all of that. Right now, I'm in Times Square on New Year's Eve with the most beautiful woman in the world who I am madly in love with. I want to focus on that right now."

Bailey smiled and leaned in and kissed him. "Well, when you put it like that, who am I to disagree?"

"Can you believe that in about an hour, it will be 2013?"

"I know..." She began laughing. "I'm going out on a limb and say the Mayans and everyone else who said the world would end in December 2012 were wrong."

Cody laughed too. "I'm going to say you were right, but in case the world does end in the next hour, I just want to spend the rest of the time we have with you."

"Me too. Cody, I have the feeling that 2013 is going to be a big year for us..."

Eventually, Marcus and Courtney rejoined everyone, and it was time for everyone to take their places out in the madhouse. For forty five minutes, they and close to a million of their closest frients were celebrating the pending new year. And for the first time since 1967, it began snowing. Finally, it reached 11:59, and everyone could look up at the top of the New York Times building and see the ball light up and begin its descent. The crowd began chanting the countdown, and when it struck midnight, confetti filled Times Square. And at midnight, Marcus grinned as he got a kiss from Courtney. And at midnight, Cody pulled Bailey close and gave her as passionate of a kiss as he could. And at midnight, Zack and Maya just looked it each other a little uncomfortably.

She stuck out her hand to shake his. "Happy New Year, Zack..."

He shook his head. "No, its midnight on New Year's Eve. We do this the right way..." And with that, he leaned in and kissed her.

__To be Continued...__


	16. The Aftermath

_Episode 16_

__"The Aftermath"__

__I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did.__

__Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them.__

__Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves.__

__And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so...__

__New York City__

After staying out in the city until close to two o'clock in the morning, everyone headed back to Marcus's apartment. But any hopes for an after party were dashed as everyone was completely exhausted by then. So, it was no surprise that within thirty minutes of being back that everyone was asleep. The next morning, Zack, Cody and Bailey had to leave to drive back to Boston as Zack had to be back at work the next day. So with a four drive ahead of them, they began making their goodbyes to everyone about eleven AM. And that included Zack having to say goodbye to Maya. To say it was kind of awkward after their kiss the night before would be an understatement. While it happened in the spur of the moment the night before, the next morning brought with it uncertainty over whether it had been the right thing to do. While he was silently berating himself for having done something so stupid, Maya decided she wasn't going to be the first one to bring it up. Instead, Zack just mumbled something about giving him a call when she got back to Boston the next week. Fortunately, Cody and Bailey were busy hugging Marcus and Courtney goodbye and didn't notice anything. When the three of them finally got to the parking garage in Marcus' building, Zack was relieved to finally have gotten out out of there. Once in the car and back on the road, he just sighed ready to face the music.

"Alright. I know you guys are just waiting to say something, so go ahead and get it over with."

Cody looked back towards Bailey, but she just shrugged. So, he turned back to his brother. "Zack...what are you talking about?"

Zack shook his head. "Please. I'm talking about the fact that Maya and I kissed at midnight last night. So, go ahead and tell me what a huge mistake I made..."

Cody was a little taken aback by his brother's admission. "Ummm. Zack, until you just told us, we had no idea that you two had kissed. At midnight, we were a little preoccupied with other things ourselves...namely kissing each other."

He sighed again. "Great. Leave it to me to let the cat out of the bag."

Bailey spoke up. "So, you two kissed? Who initiated it?"

"I did. But it was midnight, and that's the custom right?"

"Well, technically, yeah...but did you kiss her because you felt obligated to or because you wanted to?"

Zack paused to think about that. And the fact that had to think about it caused Cody and Bailey to share knowing looks with each other.

Finally, Zack sighed again. "I don't know. It just seemed like the thing to do at the time."

Cody smiled. "Did you enjoy it?"

"What difference does it make?"

"The difference is that you know full well that Maya wants to be more than just friends. You're little action last night could have given her the impression that you may be coming around to a similar way of thinking. Are you?"

Zack just gripped the steering wheel harder and shook his head. "I don't know. Codester, I just don't know. You remember how I told you last year...or I guess two years ago that I felt like my life was stuck in neutral?"

"I remember. And remember, I told you that I knew that feeling."

"Well, it feels like I'm hitting the gas, but my wheels are just spinning again. It feels like I'm stuck in mud and can't move. I know I want to be moving forward, but I can't. Maybe its becauce I don't know what it is I want. All I do know is that I really like having her back in my life again. Beyond that, I don't have a clue."

Bailey spoke up. "And you have every right to feel that way. But at the same time, it sounds like you should be having this conversation with Maya and not us. Who knows what she is thinking right now? Take it from Cody and I...in any type of relationship whether it be romantic or platonic, there needs to be honesty and communication. Take it from us, refusing to talk to each other due to a simple misunderstanding can cause a lot of problems..."

Zack nodded. "Unfortunately, I think you're right. Well, I'll be able to talk to her next week. I kind of sort of told her she could crash with us on the couch for a few days before the BU dorms open."

Cody paused. "While I would recommend doing it sooner than that, I can understand the desire to do it in person. But, Zack, Bailey is 100% right about how something that could easily be talked out and settled can snowball on you just like that. You owe it to yourself and Maya to do this as soon as possible."

__Boston__

The next day, Zack returned to work while Cody and Bailey took the opportunity they had to spend as much time as they could with Carey and Mimi. Of course, you can take the eggheads out of school, but you can't take the school out of the eggheads. One afternoon while Mimi was napping and Carey was at a rehearsal, they called to make an appointment to meet with the EP&E Director of Undergraduate Studies. Fortunately, she said she would be on campus the Saturday they were set to move back in and would meet with them that afternoon. With that settled, the took out their blue book and laptops to try to finalize a schedule from themselves. When they had one they liked, they decided to just take it easy for their remaining time in Boston to allow themselves to rest up for the upcoming spring semester.

That next week, on Wednesday afternoon, Cody and Bailey were sorting through their clothes so they could do their laundry before heading back to school. And both realized it would be a lot quicker, cheaper, and environmentally friendly to combine their clothes together so they would have fewer loads. After getting everything sorted, they filled up several laundry baskets and borrowed a luggage cart to lug them down to the basement in. As they were about to head out, there was a knock at the door. Cody opened the door to find Maya pulling a bag behind her.

"Hey...I called Zack on my way into town, and he said he would meet me here later..."

Cody nodded. "Sure thing. Come on in."

She smiled at them both as she lugged her bag inside. "Thanks for being cool with me crashing here."

"Don't worry about it, but we're actually on our way downstairs to do our laundry. So, just make yourself at home. There's food in the fridge, and Zack perpetually has his video came console hooked up."

"Thanks again. I could stand to just relax for a little while after the drive."

Cody and Bailey pushed their cart out towards the elevator while Maya just sat back on the couch to relax. She felt her eyes beginning to close as a nap was soon approaching. However, she was alerted back to reality by a knock at the door. Figuring Cody or Bailey had forgotten something, she hot up to open it only to find an older lady standing there smiling.

"Oh. Cody and Bailey just headed downstairs to do their laundry, and Zack is still at work."

The older woman smiled. "I know Zack is at work, and I guess I just missed Cody and Bailey. I'm Zack and Cody's grandmother."

Maya nodded as realization hit her. "You must be Mimi! I'm Maya."

Mimi took a few seconds to appraise Maya once she learned that's who it was. "So, you're Maya. I have to admit, when Zack told me you were coming for a few days, I was really looking forward to meeting you."

Maya sighed. "Let me guess. You wanted to meet the girl who broke your grandson's heart?"

Mimi smiled. "I won't lie. I've heard of Zack's version of what happened, but I'm old enough to know that there are always two sides of every story. I was actually wanting to meet you so I get to know the young woman who wants my grandson back so bad."

"Please come inside then."

Mimi did, and both of them took a seat on the couch.

"Now, why don't you tell me your side of what happened."

Maya nodded and began telling her of how she hadn't been looking for a relationship when she met Zack. But, he had charmed his way past her boundaries, and before she knew it, she knew she wanted to be with him. However, when it came time for graduation, she had been offered an opportunity she had wanted long before she met Zack and couldn't turn it down. She explained how she didn't want to break up but that she was scared that a long distance relationship wouldn't work.

"So, I decided to make a clean break rather than risk getting my heartbroken. And that's the biggest mistake I've ever made. I wish I could go back in time and undo it, but I can't. But almost as soon as I was gone, I began to miss him terribly. So, I cut short my appointment by a year and came back here to get Zack back. I'm sure you've heard the rest..."

"I have, but it was good to hear your version."

Maya sighed. "You probably think I'm a horrible person, don't you?"

"No, I think you are someone who made a hasty decision that she regrets because she let her fears get the best of her." Mimi smiled. "I think that makes you human."

Maya sighed in relief. "Thank you."

"Maya, we all make mistakes because we're human. Besides, there's only been one perfect person, and look what happened to him. So, I can understand it from both yours and Zack's perspectives."

Maya nodded. "I mean it, Mimi. I want Zack back, and I'm willing to do whatever it takes."

"I believe you." She paused and smiled. "My other grandson told me that something happened while you were all in New York too."

She paused before nodding. "Yeah. At midnight, Zack kissed me..."

"And?"

Maya couldn't help but smile. "Those few seconds make the past seven months completely worth it."

Mimi smiled back. "Good answer. Now, I won't lie. When it comes to my grandsons, I am extremely biased. I think the world of both of them. Right now, I have one who is completely happy both personally and professionally, and I think the world of Bailey too. And I have another grandson is doing so well professionally, but his personal life is causing him a lot of consternation. Unfortunately, both of my grandsons can be extremely stubborn, and I'm not too proud to admit that they inherit that from me."

"That doesn't bother me in the least. I can be just as stubborn."

"Good. Above all, I want my grandsons to be happy, but I also know Zack's not going to make this easy on you. I'm going to forewarn you that what happened New Year's Eve is causing him to essentially have an internal civil war inside of him. While personally I think what happened bodes well for you, I'm going to tell you right now that you can't push it with Zack. If you do, he's going to dig in his heels and all the progress you've made will be gone."

Maya nodded. "I understand. I definitely don't want that. I'll talk to him, and tell him that all New Year's Eve was was us upholding tradition. That's it."

"Good idea..." Mimi smiled. "Even though we both know better than that." She checked her watch. "Now, he should be getting home from work soon. I think I'll make my exit before he does. Good luck, Maya."

As Mimi was leaving the suite, she ran into Zack coming home from work.

"Ahh...Just the person I was looking for."

"Everything okay, Mimi?"

She smiled again. "Yeah. You're friend Maya is here from New York. I just got done talking to her."

Zack paused, curious as to his grandmother's impression of Maya. "And?"

"Well, its just my opinion and you can take it for what its worth...but I like her. Maybe its just me, but I believed everything she told me."

Zack nodded. "Thanks, Mimi."

He contemplated his grandmother's opinion as he opened the door to his suite and walked inside. And there was Maya sitting on the couch watching TV.

"Hey..."

"Hey yourself." She paused. "You think we can talk for a minute?"

He nodded. "Sure." He took a seat on the couch next to her. "What's up?"

She stopped so that she could figure out how to say what she wanted to say. "I wanted to talk about New Year's Eve. I know that what happened was just because it was midnight, and that's the tradition. We've come a long way, and I don't want something as silly as that to cause things to be awkward between us. I say we don't give any more credence to what happened than it deserves."

That caught Zack off guard as she had told him exactly what he had planned on telling her. "Really?"

She smiled at him. "Really. It happened, but its in the past now."

He nodded and smiled too. "Sounds good to me then. Thanks, Maya. I admit, I was a little bit worried, but I'm glad to see we were able to handle it in a mature way."

"Me too. Now that we have that out of the way, I did some research the last week. None of the possible humanities classes available to us sound like all that much fun at all. But, I did find one on Tuesdays and Thursday afternoons called Philosphy and Film. While it will probably still suck, we'll get to watch movies."

"Works for me." He laughed. "We'll have to make an deal to keep each other awake. Or I get to sleep on Tuedays and you on Thursdays..."

Maya laughed. "Sounds good to me."

Of course, that day's activities weren't done quite yet as it turned out to be one of two days every year that every college student either looks forward to or dreads – the arrival of their grades. While Zack and Cody had their physical envelopes in their hands, Maya and Bailey had to use their laptops to look theirs up. Cody and Bailey high fived each other again when they both pulled down yet another 4.0 for the fall semester. Zack was pretty proud of his 3.4 GPA for the semester, and Maya was willing to take her 3.33 to the bank. And in light of everyone doing so well again, Mimi once again said dinner out to celebrate was on her.

After hanging out with everyone on Wednesday and Thursday, it was time for Mimi to be dropped off at the airport on Friday so she could return to her life in Seattle. And as she said goodbye to everyone, she hugged them all. When she hugged Maya, she whispered to her to keep being positive and not to give up.

__New Haven__

On Saturday, it was time for Cody and Bailey to say goodbye themselves. And since they had an appointment at two o'clock that afternoon, they made their goodbyes and left out early Saturday morning to head back to New Haven. They got back into town about eleven thirty that morning, and by one o'clock, they had dropped their things off and parked their car in their usual parking spot in garage. And due to the bitter cold January weather that day, they were happy to take the shuttle back to Berkeley College. But they didn't have time to dilly dally as they had to head off to their appointment.

And their meeting with the EP&E Director of Undergraduate Studies (DUS) was an extremely production one. First, she signed off that they had completed all six prerequisite classes for the major. The intermediate microeconomics and macroeconomics courses they took their freshman year gave them each credit for the lesser introductory classes of both. So, that took care of three of the six prerequisites (the major required both intro classes and one intermediate one). The two philosophy classes had taken knocked out two more. Finally, their stats class finished off the sixth and final prerequisite class needed. With those done, they would need to complete nine more classes including an advanced seminar and a one semester senior projects to get their bachelors of art in EP&E. The DUS advised them to hold off on taking those both until their senior years. That left them seven classes to complete over the next three semesters. She advised them to take the intro EP&E class that spring and then they could knock out three more classes each semester of their junior years. And that was fine with Cody and Bailey as that would allow them to continue knocking out other requirements that semester as they had planned. The DUS even gave them a heads up on upcoming classes she thought would work well with both of their desired chosen areas of bioethics. When they left to head back to the dorm, both felt really good about how things were falling into place for them.

When they got back to the dorm, they headed to Cody's room to just take it easy and catch their breaths when they discovered Tapeworm and Gertie sitting on the futon watching TV.

"You two are back. We both saw your things, but didn't see you guys anywhere."

Bailey smiled. "Well, we both got into EP&E program, and we just got back from a meeting with its Director of Undergraduate Studies."

Tapeworm smiled. "Congratulations to you both! I guess I'm the only one not to get accepted in to anything over break..."

Gertie grinned. "I got accepted into architecture too!"

Tapeworm laughed. "Well, with all the good news, I guess this calls for us going out to celebrate tonight."

Cody laughed too. "Sounds good to me. And Congrats to you too, Gertie."

Tapeworm turned to Gertie. "Though, you think we can handle the paparazzi that will be following around two television stars like them?"

Cody and Bailey looked at each other in confusion. "What are you talking about?"

Gertie laughed. "They panned the crowd in Times Square on New Year's Eve and showed your friend Marcus and his girlfriend. We happened to notice you two, Zack and his friend Maya standing around them. I have to ask...was it as cold there as it looked?"

Bailey nodded. "And then some." She paused as she realized something. "You two rang in the New Year together?"

Tapeworm nodded. "I drove down to Maryland. I remember Cody telling me about the old saying about kissing the person at midnight who you want to spend the next year with..." He smiled. "I don't know if it actually works or not, but I wasn't going to tempt fate."

Cody grinned. "Good call..." He paused. "Speaking of New Year's Eve, you might be soon getting a call from..."

Tapeworm cut him off. "Max. She's already called me and told me about running into you guys that night. I told her whenever she got a chance to come visit us here so she can meet Gertie."

"Good. I'm glad she did that."

"Me too. Its good to know that she's doing so well. And, since she was the one of us who had actual talent, I'm glad to see she's still pursuing it."

"So am I. Well, we didn't get a chance to unpack when we got here, so if you'll give us the chance to do that now, we'll go out and celebrate afterwards."

And that's what they did. Which worked out because the dining halls wouldn't reopen until breakfast on Sunday morning. And Sunday was spent just getting prepared for classes starting back on the next day and taking it easy. Before they knew it though, classes had started again for the second semester of their sophomore years.

Like before, Cody and Bailey had planned a schedule from the beginning that worked just fine for them. First off was their first EP&E class, EP&E 215, Classics of Ethics, Politics & Economics, on Thursday afternoons from 1:30 to 3:20 in the afternoon. There were two sections of this class, but the DUS went off the record and advised them this section had the professor they would much rather take. Next were two classes they needed to complete their final university requirements. By the end of their sophomore years, they had to have completed two classes in the humanities, sciences and social sciences. They had those taken care of with their philosophy, physics and economics classes respectively. Further, they had to have two classes that covered their quantitative reasoning requirements. Their chemistry and math classes they had taken their first semesters of their freshmen year had knocked them out. That only left their writing and foreign language requirements. With their freshman seminar counting as one writing class, they only needed one more. And with them testing so high on their foreign language placement exams, they only needed one level 5 class to fulfill it.

Foreign language was going to satisfied with SPAN 225, Spanish for the Medical Professions, on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 9:00-9:50. They figured it would also be useful for the future careers over some other classes they could have taken. And as it was a level 5 class, that meant the course would be conducted completely in Spanish with no English allowed. But since Cody and Bailey were both fluent in it, they weren't concerned in the least. As for their final writing requirement, the chose a college seminar in neighboring Calhoun College, CSCC 240, Science Fiction and New Ideas of Human Nature, on Wednesday afternoons from 1:30-3:20. And with part of the course exploring popular television and movie figures such as Superman and the X-Men, it was a class their roommates jumped in to as it would also take care of both of their final humanities requirements.

With their first EP&E class and remaining university requirements taken care of, their remaining classes could go towards fulfilling more remaining Biology requirements. The first class to do that was MCDB 205, Cell Biology, on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9:00-10:15. Beyond that, they were going to take CHEM 230, Organic Chemistry of Biological Pathways (Organic Chem II) and its accompanying lab, CHEM 223L. The actual class would be on Mondays, Wednesdays and Friday from 10:30-11:20 with a discussion section on Tuesdays at the same time while the lab would be on Monday afternoons from 1:00-5:00 While Organic Chem II wasn't a true requirement of the Biology degree, it was a requirement of almost all medical schools in the United States. Fortunately, the Yale Biology department would let students take it and have it count as an elective for the degree.

Their schedules would give them time everyday to grab lunch while having all Tuesday and Friday afternoons to study and do homework with another free block of three hours between classes on Thursdays. And the best perk to them was that only two of the courses had regularly scheduled final exams. But beyond their schedule, there was something else academic related on Cody's mind that first week of school.

"You know, Bails, we only have two more full semesters before we take the MCAT and begin preparing our medical school applications."

She nodded. "I know."

"I just think we might want to beef up our extracurricular activities here at Yale. I mean, it will look good that we're members of the defending champion intramural ping pong team, but that's kind of all we have to put down now. I just remember in high school we were both involved in so many other activities."

Bailey paused to think. "You're right. I think our first year and a half, we just focused on making sure we could handle the workload in our classes. But, we should diversify our resumes some now. Like joining some of the professional societies and clubs like that."

Cody nodded. "Good call. But you're right in that we want to make sure whatever we join won't take too much time away from our studies." He smiled. "We both still have 4.0s, and I don't know about you, but I'd like to hang on to them for as long as we can."

She smiled. "So would I. We'll look up the student activities page and see what we find that interests us."

"Sounds like a plan. We should also find some groups that are a little out there and would make us stand out. I would suggest the Berkeley College Orchestra, but they spend so much time practicing."

"Yeah, they do." She paused and grinned again. "I think I have an idea. And I have to give credit to your friend, Max for making me think about it."

__Boston__

On that same Saturday Cody and Bailey headed back to New Haven, Maya was able to move into her dorm as well. So, that afternoon, Zack helped her move in before heading back to the hotel to give her time to unpack. And once he was back, he realized he was all alone again. His Mom was at rehearsal, his brother and Bailey back at school and Maya back in her dorm. He began to feel a little melancholy as he had grown used to having everyone around.

"Well, I guess I can do something I haven't yet this year..."

Ten minutes later, he was sitting on the couch in his boxer shorts playing video games online with Woody and Marcus. But that would be the one of the last times he would be able to do something like that for a while. While Yale started back on Monday, BU was starting back on Wednesday. And Zack still had to work all day Monday and Tuesday. If he was honest with himself, he was looking forward to only working half days again and returning back to school. And once again, he had a schedule that would let him work mornings and have afternoons off for classes.

On Mondays, he would have SHA (School of Hospitality Administration) HF 210, Financial Accounting for the Hospitality Industry, from 2:00-5:00. On Wednesdays, he would have SHA HF 220, Food & Beverage Management, from 2:00-5:00. And on Fridays, he would have SHA HF 250, Hospitality Law, from 2:00-5:00. All three were required courses he needed for his degree, and a couple of them were prerequisites for later classes he would need. While none of them sounded all that particularly thrilling to him, he did recognize the usefulness they probably had. And like Maya had suggested, he had CAS (College of Arts & Sciences) PH 159, Philosophy & Film, on Tuesdays and Thursday afternoons from 3:30-5:00 with a discussion section on Tuesday afternoons from 2:00-3:00.

That left him to be able to work every morning without any worry of a set number of hours he had to accumulate during the semester. And from the the semester before, he had quite liked having one day off to focus completely on school – and sleep in. He tried to convince Moseby of the benefits of it in that it gave him a morning to work on school stuff. Finally, they negotiated a deal in which Zack would work from 8:00 AM to noon everyday but Friday. That way, he would still be working sixteen hours per week and have his day off. With Fridays now completely free, he switched to the other section of SHA HF 250 that met on Fridays from 9:30-12:30 instead of 2:00-5:00. In Zack's mind, Friday afternoons off in the spring sounded a whole lot better than Friday mornings and he would still get to sleep in some too.

For Maya, her schedule was a little more all over the place. And once again, she was so happy and relieved that she had knocked out both semesters of chemistry she needed the proceeding summer. And like Zack, her days would be beginning at 8:00 AM as well. On Mondays, she would have SAR (College of Health & Rehabilitation Sciences: Sargent College) AT 205, Athletic Training Practicum I, from 8:00-10:00. And on Wednesdays and Fridays, she would have SAR HS 201, Introduction to Nutrition, from 8:00-9:30. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, she had SAR HP 252, Health & Disability Across the Lifespan, from 8:00-9:30. And like with Zack, she had CAS PH 159, Philosophy & Film, on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 3:30-5:00 with the same discussion section on Tuesday from 2:00-3:00. Her fifth and final class was CAS BI 106, Human Anatomy, on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 11:00-12:00 with its lab on Thursdays mornings from 10:00-12:00.

While she knew her Tuesdays and Thursdays with three classes apiecespanning from eight in the morning until five o'clock in the evening would suck, she thought she could handle it. And by filling up those days, she would have Monday, Wednesday and Friday afternoons to teach her swim classes at the fit&rec center on campus. Fortunately, those didn't begin until the first full week of classes, so she had the first half half week to get acclimated to her classes.

But for as unbalanced as her days would be, she quickly noticed a big perk that her schedule gave her. It allowed her to be free to have lunch with Zack everyday before he headed off to his afternoon classes. And she knew that fact alone would make her hellacious Tuesdays and Thursdays worth it.

__New Haven__

Cody and got back to his room that Thursday afternoon after his last class of the day and a little side trip on the way back. And when he got back inside, Tapeworm was just sitting there on the futon taking it easy watching some TV.

"I thought you're class today ended at 3:20 like our one yesterday did. Its almost five o'clock."

Cody sat his backpack down. "It did, but Bailey and I went out to sign up for some campus groups so that we can add to our medical school applications. That's where I've been."

Tapeworm nodded. "Sign up for the usual professional societies and stuff like that?"

"Yeah, plus a few others like the Gourmet's Society, the Quilting Club, the Ballroom Dancing Society and a couple environmental groups."

Tapeworm laughed. "The cooking one I know is all you, but I can't believe you let Bailey sucker you into the rest of them."

Cody rolled his eyes. "The Quilting Club was my idea too. We were in a similar one on the boat. As for ballroom dancing, think about it. I get to be part of group that not only will make me stand out on my applications, but I will get to spend a lot of time holding my beautiful girlfriend closely in my arms. Now, does it sound like I got suckered into anything to you?"

Tapeworm paused. "Well...No." He stopped to think. "Is it too late for others to sign up for the dancing one?"

__To be Continued...__

____**AN: This was supposed to have been posted last night, but the website wouldn't let me get in to post it. So, sorry for the delay. Anyways, I've finished writing Season 2 and have Season 3 already worked out in my mind. And as a reminder, remember that Season 2 is proceeding according to the wishes of the majority who voted in the poll I put up. And to be honest, it wasn't really that close in the end.**


	17. Things Are Getting Heavy

_Episode 17_

__"Things Are Getting Heavy"__

__I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did.__

__Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them.__

__Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves.__

__And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so...__

__New Haven__

That Thursday night after dinner and hanging out with their girlfriends, Cody and Tapeworm once again donned their work out gear. Heading out of their room, they passed their neighbor on their way out.

"You guys heading down to the gym again?"

Tapeworm nodded. "Sure are, Kyle." He laughed. "You don't get bodies like this by just sitting on your butt."

Kyle laughed too. "More power to you guys. I wish I had the motivation you guys did. Especially with you guys already having girlfriends and not having to worry about what you look like anymore..." And with that, he headed into his room.

Cody and Tapeworm just looked at each other and shook their heads. They continued downstairs towards the gym when Cody spoke up.

"Speaking of girlfriends. Have you told Gertie that we've been doing this for over a semester now?"

Tapeworm shook his head. "No, but I'm not trying to surprise her like you are with Bailey. To be honest, its just never come up in a conversation we've had. If she found out somehow, I'm not going to lie to her about it." He laughed. "I mean, we've only been dating about two and a half months. I don't want to do something this soon to get me into a lot of trouble."

Cody nodded. "Completely understood."

"When are you planning on telling Bailey anyways?"

"To be honest, the reason I started in the first place was because I totally misunderstood something she had said. I found that out over Christmas break. So, my original reason for killing myself in gone. But you know what? I like how I feel after I get done with our workouts."

"Don't have to convince me, Man. I flexed the other day and actually saw definition. I was psyched."

Cody laughed. "Well, to be honest, on the night you and Gertie finally got together, I thought for sure I was busted."

"What do you mean?"

"Bailey and I were dancing when she commented that my shoulders felt firmer. I had to say my suit jacket was just heavily starched to throw her off the trail."

Tapeworm laughed. "You didn't!"

"I did. I didn't feel good about it, but I didn't think I was far enough along to spring my surprise her yet."

"Well, if you're reason for doing it is gone, why not just go ahead and tell her? I mean, if you do now and explain what happened, it would lessen any chance of you getting into trouble if she found out later. And Valentine's Day is in about a month. Not a good time for you to do that."

Cody nodded. "You know, you're right. I'll tell her tomorrow."

By then they had arrived at the gym. "Alright, lets do this."

Meanwhile, Bailey and Gertie were both in their respective rooms when Bailey realized she left her new cell phone done in Cody's room.

"I know I probably won't need it until I see him in the morning, but I'd feel better if I went ahead and got it now just in case."

So, she slipped on her slippers and headed downstairs. But after knocking on Cody and Tapeworm's door for a few minutes, she stopped to think.

"I wonder why they aren't opening up..."

"Because they aren't in there."

Bailey turned and saw there neighbor standing outside of his door. And for the life of her, she was drawing a blank on his name.

"Any idea where they are?"

Kyle nodded. "Yeah, they're down in the gym doing their nightly workouts. You should be able to find Cody there." And with that, he headed back into his room again.

Bailey just stood there and frowned. "Nightly workouts? What the feathers is going on here?"

Back at the gym, Cody and Tapeworm were about halfway through their workouts when they paused to catch their breaths. Tapeworm stood up to use the water fountain while Cody sat down on a bench. And as he was sitting there, he felt a pair of hands cover his eyes.

"Guess who?"

Cody shook his head. "I have no idea..."

The hands moved, and suddenly a girl in spandex work out gear was standing in front of him smiling.

"Its me, silly!"

Cody paused. "Oh...Hey, Bridget..."

__Boston__

About the same time, Zack was sitting on the couch in his suite watching TV. Well, he had been. By then, his head was tilted back and he was drooling as he slept. Even though the next day was Friday and he could stay up a little later than usual, his body wasn't being cooperative. Unfortunately, his slumber was interrupted by a knock at his door. With a start, he sat up and tried to get his bearings.

"Huh? What? Who?"

That's when he heard another knock at his door. Wiping his chin of the drool, he got up to answer the door. And opening it up, he found his mother standing there smiling.

"Mom?"

Carey just laughed seeing the obvious signs that her oldest son had been asleep. "I didn't wake you up, did I?"

Zack shook his head. "Nah. I think I just got too comfortable watching TV. Come on in."

She did, and followed him back over to the couch where they both sat down.

"So, Mom, not that I'm not happy to see you, but what's up?"

Carey smiled again. "Can't a mother stop by and see how her son's first days of school have gone?"

Zack just looked at her. "You've already called Cody earlier, didn't you?"

"On my break, but you get me in person. So, how was your first couple of days?"

He shrugged. "Its been okay, thought I'm not so sure about this philosophy and film class."

"Why not?" She paused. "Having second thoughts about taking a class with Maya?"

Zack shook his head. "No, nothing like that. I'm just used to watching a movie, briefly talking about the high points of it afterwards and then moving on. But it seems like this professor seems like the type to want to talk about it and then talk about it some more and so on..."

Carey laughed. "Well, I think that's to be expected. I mean, it is a college class after all, and that's kind of the point."

"I know, but we're scheduled to watch some movies I really like later in the semester." He sighed. "I'm afraid its cause me to look at them in ways I don't want to..."

"I think you'll find some way to endure it." She paused. "So, you think you'll be okay having a class with her this semester?"

"Yeah, shouldn't be a problem at all. Mom, she is my friend after all."

Carey just looked at him knowingly. "While that may be true, I think we both know that there is more to it than that..."

"Okay, when studying for this class, we'll be study mates too. And, she has already asked me to dig out my stats notes and materials from last semester. She's planning on taking it over the summer."

"Zack..."

He groaned. "You know, Mom. You had been the only one who hadn't tried to add their two cents to my situation yet. I kind of liked it that way."

She smiled. "I know I haven't said anything to you yet..."

"And believe me, I've appreciated that."

"But unlike everyone else, I have a unique position here. I'm your mother."

"And believe me, I'm well aware of that too. I remember growing up with you, Mom."

Carey laughed. "You know...the longer you fight me on this, the longer it will take me to say what I have to say..."

Zack sighed and laid his head back to stare at the ceiling. "Alright, lets get it over with..."

"Good decision. But to begin with, I need to tell you a story..."

"Goody..."

"You see, Zack. One time, my then boyfriend and I..."

Zack just grabbed a pillow to hold over his face. "Noooooo!"

__Boston__

Cody just looked up at the tall blonde standing in front of him with a little trepidation. He hadn't run into her since the Halloween party, and he had been hoping that he wouldn't again. Not that he had anything against Bridget, but he had a sinking feeling she had gotten the wrong idea. But before he could think too much, she spoke again.

"Its good to see you again, Cody. I hope you had a good break."

He nodded. "I did. How was yours?"

She shrugged. "Oh, you know. I went home and did nothing for a few weeks like everyone else probably. What about you?"

"Well, we spent half the time in Boston, half the time in Kettlecorn, Kansas, and New Year's Eve in New York City."

Bridget paused. "We?"

Cody nodded again. "Yeah, my girlfriend Bailey and I. She's from Kettlecorn, Kansas, so we went to spend Christmas with her family. Which works out really well since she spends Thanksgiving in Boston with me and mine."

"Wow...spending the holidays with the other's family. Sounds serious."

"Because it is. Bailey is the woman of my dreams. She may be my girlfriend right now, but I fully plan on making her my wife someday. I've even given her a promise ring which makes us basically engaged to be engaged." He smiled. "I love her."

Bridget was crestfallen. "Oh..."

He paused. "Look, I'm sorry if you got the wrong idea as it was never my intention. But to be fair, every time I've seen you on campus, I've mentioned her. I did on the first time we met when I told you that my girlfriend and I had taken that physics class the year before. When you saw me having lunch, I was having lunch with her. When we played ultimate frisbee, I mentioned how much I thought Bailey would enjoy it. And I was dancing with her when I saw you at Halloween."

"I guess I just hoped it wouldn't last."

He shook his head. "No chance of that. Ever since I first met her, I knew she was the one for me. Since then, I don't even notice other girls..."

"But she's so pale..."

Cody rolled his eyes. "You saw her at Halloween in her costume. She was Morticia Addams. Being pale was part of her costume."

"I guess you're right. I guess after the way you first helped me and afterwards, I saw that you were sweet and smart. Not many like you out there."

He smiled. "I wouldn't really know about that, but I'm firmly off the market."

Bridget nodded. "Oh well, a girl can dream can't she?"

"I guess as long as she doesn't let those kind of dreams interfere with reality..."

"Well, if something ever happens between the two of you..."

Cody shook his head. "Don't go there. I already know I'm going to be with Bailey when I'm old, gray and need a hearing aid. And I already know she'll still be the same wonderful, beautiful person then that she is now..."

She nodded again. "I understand. Well, see you around, Cody..."

"Ummm..."

Bridget laughed. "You know what I mean."

"I do. I just hope you know what I meant too."

"I think so. I think I'm going to head back to my room now." And with that, Bridget left. And as soon as she did, Tapeworm sat down next to him.

"That looked awkward."

Cody shrugged. "I did what I had to do."

Tapeworm nodded and grinned. "So, is that what I have to look forward to now? Other girls wanting me now that I'm taken?"

Cody laughed. "You know, I've heard that theory before. Something about you've shown that if one girl is willing to put up with you, there must be something to you."

"Think there's anything to it?"

"I don't know, but I don't care to find out."

Tapeworm nodded again. "Good call." He paused and teased him. "Besides, we both know what Bailey can do with her bare hands."

Cody laughed again. "You don't have to remind me of that. And something tells me that while Gertie may be petite, she can pack quite the wallop too."

"I would definitely agree with that, and like you, I have no desire to experience the full force of her fury." He laughed. "I guess we're two whipped guys, huh?"

Cody smiled. "Yeah, but I wouldn't want it any other way. Come on, time to hit the bench press."

"Alright, let me go get some chalk on my hands, and I'll be right over."

Cody headed over to the bench press and put some weights on it. Lying back on the bench, he could sense someone standing behind him.

"You ready to spot me, Tapeworm?"

"I'm not Tapeworm, but will I do?"

Cody looked up and his eyes went wide. "Bailey?"

__Boston__

Zack was just shaking his head and groaning. Another one of his mother's boyfriend stories was the last thing he wanted to hear right then. But Carey grabbed the pillow away from him.

"Remember what I said, the sooner I tell you this, the sooner it will be over."

He sighed. "Alright, lets get this over with..."

Carey smiled. "I remember once I had broken up with a boyfriend of mine who wanted me back as well. Everybody gave me their opinion on the matter, but in the end, it was decision that only I could make."

Zack nodded. "I know, Mom. Its my decision to make, but I still just don't know."

"Well, just remember Rome wasn't built in a day. Don't let anyone pressure you to make a decision you aren't ready for."

"No one is. Even Maya has been really good about giving me space to let me deal with this."

"Good. I'm glad to hear that. I should warn you though. Maya has a fan in your grandmother. She really likes her."

Zack paused. "Isn't that something in her favor then?"

"Well, maybe. I remember when I was debating about whether or not to take my old boyfriend back, she was actually quite vocal telling me that I shouldn't. I remembered that, so that's why I've stepped back and not trying to add in my opinion too."

"Thanks."

Carey smiled. "Well, I know that the only person who knows what truly makes you happy is you. While I wish my opinion still mattered to you, I know you'll be 20 years old this year. You're old enough to make your own decisions about your future now..."

"Kind of like how you are with Cody and Bailey, huh?"

"Exactly. I just want what is best for the both of you." She laughed. "Besides, I don't want to be that woman. You know, the meddlesome mother or mother-in-law..."

Zack laughed too. "You won't be." He paused. "So, what did you decide to do about that old boyfriend?"

"In the end, I took him back. But, as I'm single, you can see it didn't work out in the end."

"Do you ever wish you could go back and undo that? You know...spend that time finding someone else?"

Carey smiled again. "Never. Zack, I would never go back and undo that. If I hadn't taken back your father, I never would have had you and Cody..."

__New Haven__

Upon seeing Bailey standing over him, instinctively, Cody sat up. Unfortunately, the bar was there to impede his movement, and he smacked his forehead against it. Immediately, his head went back to the bench as he was dazed. And when she saw what happened, Bailey was immediately concerned and went around the bar to check on him.

"Cody! Are you alright?"

He just blinked his eyes. "Are you really here or are you just a hallucination brought on by my head trauma?"

She helped him sit up without hitting the bad and sat next to him to help hold him. "No, I'm really here. Are you alright?"

Cody shook his head to clear the cobwebs from his mind. "Yeah, I'm okay. I..." He paused to think. "What are you doing here?" And that's when something else crossed his mind. "How long have you been here?"

Bailey smiled at him. "Long enough to listen to you try to let down that girl as gently as you could."

He turned to look at her. "Well, I just wanted to make sure she knew where I stood."

"And I heard what you said when she mentioned you looking her up if something happened between us."

"Bails, I meant every word."

She smiled at him again. "I know you did, and that means more to me than I can ever say. But Cody, I trust you, so I never really saw her as a threat."

"Good because no one will ever be a threat to you. I guarantee it."

"I know." She paused. "But what I am concerned about is finding out you've been doing this for a while now and never told me."

Cody sighed. "It was supposed to be a surprise for you. After I heard what you told your grandmother, I wanted to prove I could take care of myself. Of course, to do that, I realized it wouldn't hurt if I was a little more physically imposing. By the time I found out I was wrong, this had completely slipped my mind as we weren't here."

"I hope you know you don't have to do this for me, Sweetie."

He smiled. "I do, but I've discovered how good I feel once I've done. Well, not for the first couple of weeks. I was so sore that even my socks hurt."

She smiled back at him. "And let me guess. Your suit at Halloween didn't have to much starch, right?"

Cody laughed. "Well, maybe it was 50/50..."

"Well, if this makes you happy, then I want you to continue doing it."

"Thanks, Boo Boo."

Bailey smiled. "My only request is that if you do work out late at night like this, if I'm staying with you or you with me, I ask that you take a shower before coming to bed. I like the sweaty look, but you stink..."

Cody laughed again. "Consider it done."

"Who knows? Maybe Gertie and I will join you two."

He teased her. "I don't know. You might be a distraction to me wearing your workout gear."

"Oh please. I can't believe that Bridget girl was wearing what she was. How can that be comfortable?"

"I didn't notice..."

Bailey just looked at him. "Oh come on, Cody..."

"Alright, I did notice, but you want to hear the honest truth?"

"Of course...and I will be watching your nose to make sure it is."

He smiled. "The honest truth is I was thinking how amazing you would have looked it in that outfit..."

Bailey blushed, but she did notice Cody's nose never twitched.

"Cody, Sweetheart. I love you for saying that, and I love you even more for thinking it, but I'm going to tell you right now. You'll catch me wearing something like that out in public when pigs fly!"

__To be Continued...__

**AN: Alright, as most probably know by now, March Madness is soon to be upon us. And I fully plan on offering the same deal as last year. In a shameless plug to get more people rooting for my Cats, I will promise to post an extra episode if they 1) Finish the SEC regular season undefeated 2) Win the SEC Tournament 3) Make the Final Four and 4) Win the NCAA Championship. And to show that I'm an equal opportunity kind of guy, that will apply to both the men's and women's basketball teams.**__  
><em>_


	18. Growth Spurts

_Episode 18_

__"Growth Spurts"__

__I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did.__

__Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them.__

__Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves.__

__And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so...__

__New Haven__

That Friday was everyone's last day of classes of their first week back in school, and everyone was looking forward to the reprieve that the weekend would bring. However, that Saturday was a special day as it was time for Cody and Bailey to celebrate their second Remembrance Day. Both were a little amazed that it had already been two whole years since the twister in Kettlecorn, but they did both laugh as they realized weather would once again play a major role on that date. Much like the year before, Jack Frost was giving them and New England his best shot of wintry delight. All Saturday afternoon, pretty much everyone on campus didn't dare venture outside except for the brave or idiotic. But, about seven o'clock that evening, Cody would soon be joining that group as he checked himself out in the mirror and decided he looked presentable yet still warm. Grabbing the bouquet of sunflowers he had bought, he headed upstairs and knocked on the door to Bailey and Gertie's room. And when the door opened, Gertie was standing there smiling at him.

"Come on in. Bailey just said she was almost ready."

He nodded. "No worries. We have a little while before our reservations. What are you and Tapeworm getting into tonight?"

She laughed. "Well, unlike you two, we have no desire to get out in this weather. So, we're going to use the tunnel to the dining room and then head back up here to watch some movies. I looked out the window about fifteen minutes and shivered just seeing what it was like outside..."

"If this weren't such an important day to Bailey and me, I think we would be right there along side of you two."

Gertie smiled again. "Well, I know you guys will have fun, and I think its sweet what you two are doing. I hope D and I end up doing things like that too someday...you know, without having to break up first."

Cody just looked at her a little confused. "D?"

She sighed. "We're working on nicknames for each other. Right now, we're trying out 'D' and 'G', but I agree that don't seem to quite be working out like we had hoped..."

He smiled. "Don't worry. When you find the right ones, they'll just stick. I had called Bailey 'Boo Boo' once before for a completely different reason, but when she started calling me Cody Bear, it just seemed to fit naturally. Just give it time, and they will come. And by that, I mean the nicknames and not the ghosts of dead baseball players from a cornfield..."

Gertie just laughed, and about that same time, Bailey came out of her room. Cody just took one look at her and whistled.

"Wow..."

Bailey smiled at him. "Thank you, Sweetie. If I may, I'll throw an identical 'Wow' right back at you. You look very handsome tonight."

"Thank you." He held out the sunflowers to her. "These are for you."

She smiled again as she smelled them. "I love them. Give me a minute to put them in a vase, and I'll be ready to go."

Gertie spoke up. "I'll do that for you so you two can get moving. With the weather outside, you might need every minute you have."

"I appreciate that."

And with that, Cody and Bailey were off. And when they felt the cold wind smack them in the face once they stepped outside, they were again grateful that their favorite French restaurant was within a short walking distance of campus. Still, for it only being a few blocks a way, it took them over twenty minutes to get there thorough all the snow and slush. When they arrived at the Union League Cafe, they were right on time for their reservation. But like the year before, the weather had made it so it was a moot point.

After they had been seated and placed their orders, Bailey smiled at Cody. "I've noticed you've given me sunflowers two years in a row on Remembrance Day."

He smiled back. "Well, I figured since we got back together in Kansas and since sunflowers are the state flower of Kansas, that they just seemed kind of appropriate."

"I can definitely see the symbolism there."

"Its also the reason I give you roses on Valentine's Day because...well...those are the tradition. And I give you daisies on your birthday because those are your favorite flowers." He paused and laughed. "Our anniversary is a whole different animal. Last year, I tried to get you some Hawaiian hibiscus because they were the state flower of Hawaii, but those are impossible to order around her. Even the guy I talked to at the 1-800 place laughed at me when I asked if he could get them for me."

Bailey laughed too. "I would imagine so. But the bouquet of orchids you got me instead was absolutely beautiful. I think it may rank just behind the Hawaiian sunset we saw together."

Cody grinned. "And both rank behind you. Like I told you that day on deck, that sunset was still the second most beautiful thing I've ever seen."

Bailey leaned across the table to kiss him. "Thank you. But you did mention Valentine's Day a few minutes ago. I got a call from Courtney this morning asking if we were coming back to New York to celebrate it with them again."

"What did you tell her?"

She shrugged. "I told her it didn't look like we'd be able too. Valentine's Day is on a Thursday, so the weekend after would be the big weekend to do everything. But we have our first Organic II exam that next Monday. We just can't afford to waste a day of studying right then and there."

He nodded. "You're right. I hope she understood."

"Oh, she did, and I asked her for a raincheck for some other weekend that worked better for everyone."

"Works for me." He smiled. "I think Marcus has definitely met his match in that one."

Bailey laughed. "I think you're right. And I'm happy for them." She paused. "I know we'll probably spend that weekend studying, but maybe we could ask Gertie and Tapeworm to go out to dinner with us that Thursday night."

Cody paused to think too. "Maybe. If they have something planned for the weekend too. But if that is the night they are doing their celebration, they might want to spend their first Valentine's Day together alone."

"Good point." She paused and smiled again. "You remember our first one together?"

He smiled too. "Do I ever. That was a wonderful day."

"Yeah it was. I still can't believe all you had planned for that day."

At that moment, the waiter returned with their drinks and salads. Cody held up his class. "How about a toast?"

Bailey held up hers too. "Alright, what should we drink too?"

"To us. For two years now, we've avoided...well...for lack of a better term, being stupid. Here's to us remembering every year to keep that streak alive and growing."

"I will definitely drink to that."

__Boston__

That next Monday, Zack was still asleep at ten o'clock that morning. Of course, that Monday was the day Martin Luther King, Jr. Day was being observed, and not only were classes canceled that day, but the corporate offices of London Inns was also closed. So, with a day off to do whatever he wanted and no real homework due yet, Zack decided that catching up on his sleep was a good plan. Of course, it didn't help things that he was up till two in the morning playing video games with Woody online.

But all good things have to come to an end, and he was broken out of his slumber by a knock at his suite door. Grumbling, he got up to answer it.

"This better not be Mom waking me up again..."

Opening his door, he was a little surprised to see Maya standing there smiling at him.

"Maya?"

"Rise and shine, Sleepyhead!" She began laughing. "I can't believe you were still asleep."

Zack just paused as she walked past him into the suite. "Well, it is my day off after all."

Maya just turned and smiled at him. "I know, but its my day off too, and I don't want to waste a single second of it."

He just looked at her and shook his head. "Do what you want. I'm going back to bed."

"You sure you want to do that? I might be able to make it worth your while if you were to stay awake."

He sighed. "Tell me what you have in mind, and I'll make my decision then..."

She just kept grinning. "Well, you know today is a holiday, right?"

"Hence why we're here and not at work or school."

Maya ignored that remark. "On holidays, there are usually special sporting events made for TV. Well, today, my Knicks are playing your Celtics at 2:00. Now, if you would prefer to stay in bed, I'll just see if I can find someone else who wants to use these two tickets that Daddy gave me..."

That caught Zack's attention and he immediately perked up. "Celtics tickets? You should have said something sooner! Of course I'm game for a...game!"

She laughed. "Good. Though, if you are going to be sitting next to me, I insist you shower, shave and change clothes. While I find those pajama pants adorable, I'm pretty sure you'll freeze outside in them."

Zack paused to look down at what he was wearing. "You may have a point there..." He paused as a thought crossed his mind that had never occurred to him before. "You know...this is twice you've pulled something like this off. First with the Yankees/Sox tickets and now this. And both times, you said you're Dad gave them to you. What exactly does your Dad do that he constantly gets offered tickets like this?"

Maya shrugged. "He's an agent for athletes, kind of like a Jerry Maguire. I grew up with him taking me to games all the time. That's probably where my love for sports came from because I was exposed to it from an early age."

He nodded. "I can see that. And that would explain why he's constantly being offered tickets."

"Exactly. And don't think I'm still not upset that I missed getting to meet every pro athlete that you did on the boat. I can't believe I was sick when you saw Rafael Nadal. Of course, he'll be 27 in a few years, so he's probably about ready to retire."

He smiled. "Don't forget. We got to meet Dwight Howard, Kevin Love and Deron Williams while you were home on Christmas break."

She shook her head. "Don't remind me. I still can't believe you, Cody and Woody beat them in a game of three on three." She paused. "Are you sure they didn't let you guys win?"

Zack rubbed the back of his neck and looked away. "All I know is we played as hard as we could. And surprise of surprises, Woody and Cody didn't totally suck."

Maya just gave him a look. "Like I believe that!"

"Its true. And they were all good guys too. It was actually thanks to them that we all ended up in Kettlecorn. They told Cody to just go for it and tell Bailey how he really felt about her."

Maya just looked him in the eyes. "Sounds like really good advice. One should always go after what they want."

"I guess." He paused and looked away again. "Let me get changed and we'll get moving. Since you got the tickets, the least I can do is buy lunch."

"Sounds good to me." She took off her coat to show her Jeremy Lin #17 blue Knick's Jersey over top of an orange long sleeved t-shirt.

Zack just shook his head. "I should have known...You actually bought into that Linsanity nonsense like everyone else..."

__New Haven__

That Wednesday, after the joint class they all had together, Bailey, Cody, Tapeworm and Gertie all took advantage of a free service offered by the Yale Student Health. Every year, they would offer free physicals to everyone who wanted one. And as four health conscious young adults, they weren't going to let an opportunity like that pass by. Since Student Health scheduled appointments alphabetically by college, and Berkeley College was the first college alphabetically, those in that college had until the end of January to schedule an appointment. And for Bailey and Gertie, it was also highly recommended to them to schedule a longer appointment so they could meet with a gynecologist as well. So, on Wednesday afternoon, they headed straight towards student health after getting out of class. And since Bailey and Gertie's appointments would take a little longer, their appointments were for 3:45 while they guys' appointments weren't scheduled until 4:15. A little after five o'clock, the guys came out to the waiting area where the ladies had been waiting for a few minutes. And immediately, they could see the scowl on Tapeworm's face and the huge smile on Cody's.

Gertie was concerned. "Are you okay, Dennis?"

He shook his head. "Well, there's good news and bad news..."

"What? Tell me."

"The good news is that I don't have a hernia. The bad news is the doctor violated me to find that little piece of information out!"

Gertie and Bailey looked at each other and began laughing hysterically. In fact, Gertie had to wipe tears as the began falling down her cheeks.

Tapeworm just rolled his eyes. "Gee...Thanks."

"Awww. My poor, baby. Tell you what. Next time, I will gladly trade you places. I'll turn my head and cough and you can climb up into the stirrups."

He paused. "Well...maybe I exaggerated it a little bit."

Bailey just smiled. "I don't think either of you have anything to compare to us for another twenty years when its time for you first prostate exams. Of course, by then, we'll still be able to trump you with giving birth." She turned to Cody and teased him. "But you're smiling though. Should I be worried about something?"

Cody just shook his head. "Nope. Actually, they discovered something, but its good news."

"What is it?"

He smiled. "All in good time, my dear. First, how did yours go? Did everything check out alright?"

Bailey nodded. "Yeah. They said I was as healthy as horse. Now tell me what has caused you to smile so much."

"They measured me again..."

"And?" She paused as realization hit her. "Are you saying what I think you're saying?"

Cody kept smiling as he nodded. "Uh huh. In my bare feet, I now stand six feet, three sixteenths of an inch!"

Bailey just smiled and hugged him. "Congratulations, Cody Bear! You've grown almost a half an inch in the past year!"

"I know. Isn't it great?"

Tapeworm rolled his eyes again. "I remember when I passed six feet. I think I was fifteen."

Cody just shrugged. "Yeah, well, you've always been taller than me. But you remember how short I used to be. It just feels good to know I eclipsed six feet." He paused. "I guess Dwight Howard was right. He said I might grow some more, and I did..."

"Dwight Howard as in the all NBA center Dwight Howard?"

"Yeah. Turns out he is Moseby's younger half brother."

Tapeworm paused. "But isn't Moseby's older brother an...ummm...you know?"

"Yeah. The genetics must run crazy in that family. But there is one benefit to this that is better than anything else..."

Bailey turned back to him. "What's that? Me never having to slouch ever again?"

Cody grinned. "Nope. The biggest perk will be rubbing this into Zack's face! It will kill him that I passed six feet and he's still about five ten!"

__Boston__

About the same time in Boston, Zack had just gotten out of his Food & Beverage Management class, so he decided to stop back by the offices of London Inns to finally discuss something important with Moseby. And by the time he got back there, Moseby was gathering his things to head home for the day. But seeing Zack standing in his doorway, he paused and just looked at him.

"Can't get enough of this place, huh?"

Zack laughed. "Well, to be honest..."

Moseby shook his head. "Don't. Not to be rude, Zack, but I'm on my way home. What do you want?"

"Actually, I was hoping to talk to you about something if I could, Moseby?"

Moseby sighed. "Is it important?"

"I think so..."

"This doesn't have to do with Maya does it because as your boss, I shouldn't be getting involved with your personal life."

"Well, she knows about this, but it doesn't have anything to do with her. It has to do with my education..."

Moseby sat back down and groaned. "The semester just started. You can't be having trouble in a class already."

Zack sat down in a chair opposite of him and smirked at his boss. "No, I'm not. Actually, its kind of the opposite of that. Moseby, I've been thinking. I might want to go to grad school after I graduate..."

Moseby just sat there for a moment in silence. Finally, he shook his head. "Excuse me?"

"I'm thinking of continuing school once I finish my degree in hospitality management, and I was thinking of getting a MBA afterwards. Do you think that is something that I would find useful with my job here? I..."

But before Zack could finish, he had to jump out of his chair as Moseby had fainted. Deciding the situation required it, he began slapping Moseby to wake him up. And after a few seconds, Moseby snapped back to consciousness and looked up at Zack while he held his cheek.

"What happened?"

Zack just shook his head. "You passed out."

"I don't know what happened. I think I dreamed that you told me you wanted to pursue an MBA."

"I did."

Moseby gripped the armrests of his chair to steady himself. "You're serious about this?"

Zack nodded. "Yeah, I think I am. But I asked if you thought it would help me around here."

"Zack, of course it would! It would give you the ability to see things not only from the hospitality standpoint but also the business and management standpoint. And if you desire to be an effective administrator, there isn't a better degree to have."

"So, if I decided to pursue this, would you and London support me in it?"

Moseby smiled. "Of course I would. Zack, I would be behind you 110% if that's what you chose to do. And I'm pretty confident that London would be too. I'm not sure I've ever said this before, but I'm proud of you."

Zack smiled. "Thanks. So, should I set up a formal meeting with you and London and draw up a proposal outline of what I have in mind?"

Moseby just looked at him in surprise again. He pulled out his pocket hanky and dabbed his eyes. "My hooligan has grown up!"

Zack rolled his eyes again. "Yeah, yeah. So, is that what I should do?"

"I think that would be a very good idea." He paused. "But, you might want to take some classes to help prepare you for that. If I remember correctly, you have about five classes that you can take what ever you want your last few semesters."

Zack grinned. "Yeah, I read that too. I'm looking forward to taking some really easy classes then...like underwater basket weaving!"

"Well, if you really want to go for an MBA, you can forget that right now. I'd suggest you consider getting a minor in Business Administration & Management. You might not be happy about taking those classes at the time, but while you are in graduate school, you'll be on your knees thankful that you did..."

Zack slumped in his seat. "I should have seen something like this happening...I knew it was too good to be true."

Moseby smiled. "Tell you what. I know someone over in the business school over at BU. I can call them and find out exactly what you would need to do. Once I do, I'll get that information to you so you can include it in your proposal." He paused. "But to be on the safe side, lets put off scheduling a meeting with London until right before spring break."

"Why so far away?"

"Because by then, Arturo Vitali will have released his new spring line, and London will be in a much, much better mood..."

Zack paused and nodded. "Yeah, good call..."

About that time, the door to Moseby's office swung open, and London herself walked in. She just made her way over to the seat next to Zack's and sunk back into it. Moseby and Zack just looked at each other as both immediately noticed the far away look on her face. So, Moseby got up and walked around the front of his desk.

"London? Are you alright?"

She just kept staring into space.

"London?"

Zack shook his head and reached into his pocket for his wallet. Opening it up, he pulled out several dollar bills and waived them under her nose. That did the trick as London immediately snapped back to reality. She paused and looked at Zack.

"Ones? Really?"

Moseby ignored that. "London, are you alright? You walked in here looking like you were a million miles away."

She sighed. "No, I'm not alright! Moseby, I've got a problem!"

"Have you told your father? I'm sure he'd help you."

London shook her head and laughed. "Not with this problem. Not a chance! He'd run away before dealing with this!"

"What could be so bad?"

"Its my mother! She left me a voicemail that she's coming to visit me on Saturday!"

__To be Continued...__

**AN: Just a reminder. I'm treating this as an actual TV show with episodes instead of chapters. So, I'm using reviews as ratings, and I've noticed ratings have begun to decline a little. Call it a shameless plug for more reviews, but I'd really hate to see SLOC get cancelled after season two.**__  
><em>_


	19. Meet the Parents

_Episode 19_

__"Meet the Parents"__

__I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did.__

__Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them.__

__Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves.__

__And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so...__

__Boston__

Zack and Moseby just looked at each other with concern. Both had known London long enough to know the history of her relationship with her mother and the full impact of what she had just told them. So, they both did everything they could to put the best spin on the situation as possible.

"Well, that's a good thing, isn't it?" Zack paused and smiled. "I mean, the last time I remember her coming to see you was your 16th birthday party. And since this isn't a special occasion, this has to be a good sign, right?"

London just turned, gave him a dirty look and began ranting. "Yeah. And that was what? About six years ago? Gee...that sounds like a good thing to me that my Mom waited a whole six years to come and see me again!"

Moseby tried to calm things down a little bit. "Did she mention in her message if there was a reason for her visit?"

She sighed. "No, she didn't. She just said she's see me at my penthouse sometime Saturday afternoon..." Her anger returned. "That's just like her! She didn't even give me a definite time when she'd be here!" London paused to collect herself. "I'll bet either of you a $1000 that she doesn't even show up."

Zack and Moseby looked at each other again. "That's not something appropriate to bet on, London...even if we did have the money for that."

She shook her head. "Besides, I already have plans for Saturday. With Todd being so busy with school during the week, we were going to do something this weekend so we could have some quality time together. Why should I have to cancel that for her?"

"Because she's your mother..."

London just looked back and forth between them again. "You two wouldn't understand. Zack, your Mom is wonderful. Carey is always there supporting you and Cody in whatever you do. Heck, before we left for the ship, she was practically a surrogate mother to me and Maddie both. And on the boat, she came and saw you all several times. She was even there at your graduation. Did my mother ever visit me there? Was my mother there for my graduation?"

Zack just shook his head. "No, she wasn't."

London turned her attention to Moseby. "And you? Well, I'll give you that your mother can be highly critical of you and show her favoritism towards Spencer and Dwight. But I'm my mother's only child, and that's only because she didn't want to risk ruining her figure again. Having no other siblings, shouldn't I be her favorite then?"

Moseby nodded sadly. "Theoretically, yes, you should be..."

"But at least your mother has been a constant presence in your life. I know she still calls you here a few times a week. Think about it Moseby. I would much rather have mine do that and be critical of me than forgetting about me except for once every six years!"

"I'm sorry, London."

She just shook her head and sighed. "Its not your fault, Moseby. Some days, I feel really sorry that you got roped in to my highly dysfunctional family. I mean...I know Daddy isn't much better than my Mother is, but at least I see him every so often. And on Thanksgiving, he was in town and even wanted to spend it with me."

Moseby nodded. "Yeah, it does seem like he's gotten much better since you graduated."

"I think it goes back to Kettlecorn. After I blackmailed him, I think he saw me in a whole new light. Instead of just being his only child who mooched off of him, I showed him that I had a lot of him in me. I think he was proud of me and finally saw me as a chip off the old block..."

Zack spoke up. "Look, London. I've only met your father a handful of times and your mother once, but while you might be a little like him, you do have something he doesn't..."

"What's that?"

"A heart." He smiled. "Trust me, I've seen it first hand that you do actually care about other people. You might not like to show it very often, but we all know you do."

London smiled back at him. "Thanks." She paused and sighed again. "But its because all of you guys have become my family more than my parents have. You guys actually like me and want to be around me..."

Moseby smiled at her too. "And we will continue to do so. You have a lot of people who care about you London. Besides Zack and I, you have Todd, Madeline, Emma, Carey, Arwin, Cody, Bailey, Addison, Woody, Marcus...this list goes on and on."

She stopped to think, and an idea formed in her head. "You know... you're right." She stood up defiantly. "I'm actually looking forward to my mother coming to see me now. I'm going to finally tell her a few things that I should have a long time ago!" And with that, she walked out of the office with a lot of determination in her steps.

Zack turned back to Moseby. "This could get interesting. I think I should warn Esteban when I get back to the hotel that there might be fireworks on Saturday afternoon."

Moseby nodded. "I think that's a very good idea. I just wish there was something else we could do..."

"I'm open to ideas..."

"I just wish there was someone there that both would listen to that could be sort of like a referee to them..." He paused and grinned. "Actually, I think there is..."

"You heard London. Mr. Tipton won't want to have anything to do with this at all..."

Moseby kept grinning. "No, not him. Someone much, much better..." He checked his watch and did some calculations. "I have a phone call to make..."

__New Haven__

On Friday night, Cody and Bailey were just hanging around his room taking it easy. Since the weather was still cold and snowy outside, they decided a night inside was the prudent thing to do. In fact, once they got back from their last class of the day that morning, they never left the confines of Berkeley College once. For lunch and dinner both, they used the underground tunnel to head over to the dining hall. And they spent the afternoon studying and doing homework before deciding to just lounge around and watch some TV that evening. But around nine o'clock, they had flipped through every channel they had and could find anything on TV that interested them in the least. So Bailey just turned to Cody and smiled.

"Sweetie?"

He turned to face her. "Yeah, Bails?"

"Since we can't find anything to watch, how about we head down to the gym and you getting me started on a workout routine too? I think I'd like to begin working out too..."

"If that's what you want..." He smiled. "...but I already think you're perfect just the way you are."

She smiled back at him. "I appreciate that, but studies say that not only exercise good for your physical health, its good for your mental health, and it helps to reduce stress."

Cody nodded. "Alright, well, why don't you head upstairs and change into some work out clothes, and I'll meet you up there in fifteen minutes?"

"Sounds good." She leaned in and kissed him. "Thank you, Cody Bear."

That evening, Cody put Bailey through her first workout, and by the time they fished about an hour and a half later, she was physically exhausted.

Bailey was panting. "You've been doing this five nights a week since last semester?"

He laughed. "I have. Trust me, once your body quits fighting you, it gets much, much easier."

She took a big swig from her water bottle. "I sure hope so...My shoulders and arms feel like they want to secede from the rest of my body."

Cody teased her. "So, does that mean you don't want to join me tomorrow night? I mean today was all upper body. Tomorrow will be lower body."

Bailey closed her eyes as she sat on the bench and took a deep breath. "I'll think about it. Right now, all I want is a hot shower."

He kept teasing her. "Good thing because I'm going to impose the same rule on you that you did on me."

"Fine with me. At least I know I'll sleep good tonight." She stood up. "Its a quarter till eleven right now. I'll be back down to your room in forty-five minutes." She paused. "And if I haven't, send Gertie into the bathroom to make sure I haven't passed out in there..."

But, at eleven thirty, Bailey did show back up to Cody's room dressed for bed in a tank top and pajama pants. Cody was too, well except he had on a t-shirt, and after she came in, she immediately headed into Cody's bedroom to lie down.

"The shower helped, but I just need sleep now. It took took the last bit of energy I had to make it back down here. So, I should be out cold momentarily...well, if I can ever get my shoulders to stop aching."

Cody just smiled at her. "Roll over on to your stomach."

Bailey was too tired to ask why and just did what Cody said. He sat down next to her and begin to slowly rub her shoulders.

"Ohhh. That feels heavenly." She sighed and smiled into his pillow. "I knew there was a good reason to keep you around."

He laughed. "Thanks...I think. Wish you could have returned the favor when I first started..."

She just closed her eyes to let herself enjoy the massage. "You keep doing that for about another thirty minutes, and I'll do anything you want..."

He kept laughing. "Uh huh. I'll remember you saying that..."

Just then, they both heard a knock on the main dorm to the room. Bailey just groaned. "Whoever it is, tell them to go away. I need you in here..."

"Maybe its Tapeworm and he forgot his keys or something."

"Doubtful. He and Gertie were just starting another movie when I left to come down here."

Cody shrugged. "Well, you stay right here, and I'll go get rid of whoever it is..."

He got up and headed out into the common room. When he opened the door, Cody was completely shocked by who he saw standing there in front of him.

"Dad?"

"Cody!" Kurt Martin just grinned and pulled his youngest son in for a big hug. When he let go, Cody just shook his head and smiled.

"Dad? What are you doing here?"

"I told you I was going to stop by New Haven in late January. Well...here I am!"

"I just had no idea you were coming. You never called or e-mailed me that you were..."

Kurt grinned again. "I know. I wanted it to be a surprise for him. I just got in from New York a little while ago. Fortunately, some kind soul took pity on me and pointed out that Berkeley College had a north and south side. I was over in the south side completely lost for about a half hour..."

Cody was about to say something when the door to his bedroom opened, and Bailey stepped out into the common room.

"Cody, what's taking so..." She paused, and her eyes went wide when she saw Cody's father standing there. "Mr. Martin!"

Kurt just looked back and forth between his son and his girlfriend who had just come out of his bedroom dressed for bed. "Well, well. What do we have here?"

Cody's eyes went wide too, and he began stammering. "Dad...I can explain! This isn't what it looks like!"

Kurt grinned again. "It isn't? Looks to me like you two were getting ready for bed together like you two usually do..."

Cody was taken aback. "You know?"

Kurt laughed. "Of course I know. Your Mom has kept me informed of both of your nocturnal habits. No big deal to me, but I couldn't turn down having a little fun with the two of you...And Bailey, its a pleasure to see you again."

She nodded in relief. "You too, Mr. Martin."

"I've told you to call me Kurt." He checked his watch. "And I guess it is pretty late for you two. I'm so used to being up all hours of the night that anytime before midnight is early for me. But, I do want to see this place that you two live and learn at. How about I let you two get some shuteye, and you guys give me the grand tour tomorrow?"

Cody nodded and smiled. "Sure. Come back around eleven o'clock, and you can have brunch with us down in the dining hall on me."

Kurt nodded and paused. "I admit I'm used to being up late, but I'm not real familiar with being up before noon. But I'll be here. Alright, I'll let you two get back to...whatever you were doing, and I'll see you in the morning." But before he left, he leaned down and whispered in Cody's ear. "That's my boy!"

__Boston__

On Saturday afternoon, London was pacing back and forth in her penthouse just waiting in case her mother actually did show up. She was relieved and thankful that Todd had been so understanding about her mother's sudden unexpected visit, but she told him that no matter what, she would be done with it quickly and available to go out to dinner later that evening. And as London kept pacing, she actually picked up Ivana to pet her so she would have something to do with her hands - despite Ivana's barks of displeasure. About four o'clock that afternoon, London turned when she heard a knock at her door. Walking over, she opened the door to see her mother standing there holding her own toy poodle.

"London!" And with that, the former Mrs. Tipton leaned in and did the air kisses on both sides of London's face. But when she pulled back, she could see the expression on her daughter's face was not a pleasant one.

"Mother. You actually showed up. Guess I'm glad the Moseby and Zack were too poor to take that bet. Anyways, what do you want?"

Her mother just took a step back. "London...can't a Mom just stop by and see her daughter?"

"For most mothers, yes. For you, not really. Why now? What's so important that you had to see me now. The last time you did, it was my 16th birthday. You never once came to see me on the boat...not even for my graduation!"

She stepped back. "Well, I have very good reasons for that. I was extremely busy at the time and just couldn't get away."

London smirked. "Neither could Daddy, but he at least called. And speaking of being busy, I hope this won't take long. I'm supposed to be going to dinner with my boyfriend tonight."

"You have a boyfriend? That's wonderful! Maybe I've heard of his family?"

London shook her head. "It doesn't matter if you have or not. He likes me, and I like him. I have fun with him and can just be myself with him. It doesn't matter what his last name was or who his parents were..."

"Well, I'd like to meet him too and get to know him as well..."

London shook her head again. "Why would you want to get to know him when you've never bothered to get to know me?"

Her mother was taken aback. "London...That's not fair! I do know you!"

She smirked at her. "Oh yeah? What's my favorite color?"

London's mother paused to think. "Pink?"

London rolled her eyes. "No...its Sparkly!"

Her mother sighed. "Just because I don't know your favorite color, it doesn't mean I don't know you."

"Face it, Mother. You don't know me at all. You couldn't. You haven't spent any time with me...hardly ever. When I was little, you left me with Daddy. Of course, he pawned me off on to Moseby. But turns out that was a good thing for me. At the very least, Moseby has been like an uncle to me. And he's not the only one who's been in my life and been like family to me. There are Maddie and Bailey who are like sisters to me. And then there are Zack and Cody who are like my little brothers. But you want to know the really sad thing?"

She just nodded. "Yes. I would."

"Even with them, it took so long for me to allow them to see the real me. For the longest time, with you and Daddy not around, I thought I had to act a certain way to get people to like. If I wore the latest fashions or spent a lot of Daddy's money, I thought it would draw attention to me and get people to notice me. And I know I'm not the smartest person in the world nor am I in Cody or Bailey's league. But for some reason, I decided to act like I was the dumbest rather than be middle of the pack. I guess I figured that would cause me to get more attention."

"I never knew."

"Well, I got lucky. No matter what, my surrogate family accepted me even with the way I acted and still liked me anyways. I'm proud to call all of them my friends, but I'm grateful to call them my family. But even with them around to support me, I almost lost them all by taking them for granted. Luckily, I had...someone convince me that I couldn't do that. And since then, I like to think I've changed a little bit for the better. I'm more free to be the real me now, and I plan on taking care of those who have taken care of me for so long."

"I'm glad."

"But the fact remains that you never bothered to get to know either version of me. Mother, like I said, its been six years since you've seen me. Why now?"

Her mother paused. "Well...You see..."

London shook her head and interrupted her. "You know what? It doesn't matter. I don't care. Right now, all I want is for you to leave."

"But London!"

"Mother, I..."

Before she could continue though, they both heard a loud voice. "Will you both just shut up? I swear, I don't know which one of you is the most stubborn..."

Both turned, and both of their mouths fell open in shock. London gasped. "Khun Yai? What are you doing here?"

__New Haven__

About the same time as everything was going down in Boston, the group of Kurt, Cody, Bailey, Gertie and Tapeworm were returning from an intensive tour of Yale's campus. Turns out Kurt didn't quite make it back to meet them at eleven that morning, but he did show up by noon. So, they were still able to have brunch/lunch in the dining room before beginning their excursion. It took a little jogging of his memory, but Kurt finally did remember Tapeworm from meeting him years ago in Boston. And he was pleased to meet Gertie and get to know here a little bit as well. When they finally got back to Berkeley College from seeing all of campus, everyone was happy for the chance to warm up some inside. Gertie and Tapeworm made their goodbyes and headed upstairs to give Cody and Bailey some time alone with Kurt.

"I have to say, I always thought the term 'Ivy League' was more symbolic than anything, but I can see first hand that ivy is all over the place here. They must pay the landscapers a fortune to keep it all looking in such good shape."

Bailey laughed. "Yeah, they're constantly working on it - when its warmer."

Kurt shook his head. "Speaking of this weather, I don't see how you guys do it. If I woke up early and knew it was going to be this cold outside, I'd be awfully tempted to just stay in bed."

This time, Cody laughed. "Well, that's where it helps having Bailey in all of my classes with me. Between the two of us, we make sure the other is up and ready to go to class. Besides, both of us have long perfect attendance streaks we're in no hurry to see come to an end." He paused. "I still don't count that time Zack dragged me to the mall when we were in middle school..."

Kurt just smiled. "Yeah, knowing how studious you two are, I can definitely see how you two would push each other. And, I will say I was pleasantly surprised with the food in your dining hall. It was actually really good! Much better than some of the spreads they gave us on the road."

"Well, in the past, Yale has been voted as having the best student dining facilities in the country, and specifically, Berkeley College has been honored as being the best dining hall in the country."

Kurt nodded. "I believe it. So, back to why you guys are really here, how are classes going this semester?"

Bailey shrugged. "So far, so good. It does feel good knowing we are among the minority who are truly fluent in Spanish in our Spanish class. No English whatsoever is allowed at all during class, so a lot of people are completely lost in there."

He laughed. "That would include me as well. I only know a few choice phrases in Spanish. But, to be completely honest, after hearing about some of your other classes, I think I'd be just as lost in them." He smiled. "I'm really proud of you both for how well you're doing here."

Cody smiled back. "Thanks, Dad."

"Don't thank me just yet. All I know is I will have two doctors in the family when I'm old and gray and will need them."

Bailey laughed. "Not sure how useful I'd be as I plan on being a pediatrician."

Kurt shrugged. "Well, then I know any future grandchildren of mine will be well taken care of."

Cody shook his head and laughed. "That will be quite a few years down the road, Dad - at least for Bailey and I. Anyways, how was your European tour?"

"It was good. I actually took the time to see some of the places you told me about in all of your e-mails. I have to admit, they were worth seeing. I especially liked that Palace at Wurttemberg..."

Cody turned to Bailey and smiled. "See?" She just shook her head at him.

Kurt grinned and continued. "Oh, I need to thank you and Zack again. Thanks to you guys, I almost got a hero's welcome in Martinsgrab, Sweden. People kept telling me about what you guys did to clear our family's name and reputation there, and I'm really proud of you both for doing that..." He paused. "Of course, there was some guy there driving an electric car grumbling about how you two ruined his life. Somebody told me he was the former mayor. I don't think he is your biggest fan, but his daughter to ask me to say hello to one of you though..."

Cody and Bailey turned to each other and laughed. "That would be Zack. Though, I think he has enough on his plate right now that it might not mean much to him."

"Yeah, how is he really doing by the way? I do plan on heading up there to see him once I leave here, but I wouldn't mind knowing the situation I'm walking into..."

Cody paused. "To be honest, Dad...I'm not sure. If you ask me, I think Zack wants to and to some degree has let Maya back into his life if not his heart. But right now, he's being too stubborn to realize it or to admit it to himself."

Bailey spoke up. "But from what we hear, they've been spending a lot of time together, so..."

Kurt nodded. "Alright. That's good to know."

Cody spoke again. "But you might not want to say anything to him unless he asks. This is something he needs to figure out on his own."

"I'll remember that." He paused and shrugged. "Well, I know you two will spend tomorrow studying, and I plan on traveling to Boston tomorrow while the sun is still out. But I'd love to take you guys out to dinner tonight if you'll let me."

Bailey smiled. "We'd like that. We'll take you to one of the popular campus hangouts and let you get more of a taste at what life at Yale is all about."

"Sounds good to me." Kurt paused again. "Now, Bailey, would you mind if I borrowed my son for a couple of hours?"

"Not at all." She smiled again. "But I will want him back eventually."

Kurt laughed. "I'll bring him back when we pick you up for dinner later."

"Sounds good then." She leaned in and kissed Cody goodbye. "See you in a little while, Sweetie." And with that, she headed off for the stairs.

Kurt turned to his son. "You've got yourself a special one there, Son."

Cody smiled. "I know I do." He paused. "So, what do you need to borrow me for?"

"Well, turns out there was this lady who was the great, great, great, great, great, great, great, great, great..." He paused as he thought. "...great granddaughter of our great, great..." Kurt paused. "...well, several more greats aunt of ours. Turns out this however many greats aunt of ours was the baby sister of Knut and Olaf. Anyways, this woman still lived in Martinsgrab until she died recently. For some reason, you and Zack were both left things in her will. So, I need you sign some official documents for it so you can get your inheritance."

Cody frowned. "I wish we had know she was there a couple of years ago. I would have loved to have met her." He paused as something dawned on him. "How did she even know about us to put her in her will?"

Kurt smiled. "Well, according to what people told me, she was kind of hermit and spinster and was afraid of having children of her own. You know...from the bad reputation our family had. Supposedly, once we were cleared, she could get out and live her life again and was eternally grateful to you boys for making that happen."

Cody nodded. "Okay..." He paused. "Not to sound too morbid, but what exactly where we left?"

__Boston__

Both London and her mother just stood there in shock seeing their respective grandmother and mother there glaring at them.

"Khun Yai? What are you doing here?"

She sighed. "Moseby called me and told me that my daughter was stopping by to see you today and a little bit of the history behind your relationship. So, I cashed in one of the open ended plane tickets you gave me to come visit you so I could be here for this moment. Now, how about we step inside your penthouse so the entire world doesn't hear our family business?"

London's mother spoke up. "But mother..."

"Save it, Kim." She shook her head. "I swear...you two are the most stubborn people I know. Even my elephant isn't this bad..."

Once inside with the door closed, Khun Yai looked back and forth between her daughter and granddaughter. "Look, I know this moment has been building for a long time, and I should have done something about it well before now. Well, I'm here now, and I'm not leaving until we reach some kind of understanding. Let me see if I understand everything. Kim, you want to spend some time with your daughter." Khun Yai smirked at her. "Trust me...I know what that's like..." She turned to London. "And London, you are feeling resentful because she just showed up out of the blue after no contact for years and expects everything to be normal. Am I right?"

London and her mother just looked at each other and nodded.

Khun Yai continued. "Alright then, we'll there's good news and bad news. The good news is since I love both of you, I'm going to do everything in my power to help us all come to a solution. The bad news is that nothing will be fixed overnight..."

"But Mother, I..."

She interrupted her daughter. "Again, save it, Kim! I've been flying for practically the last twenty-four hours. London, I know I told you I don't like fancy things, but thank you for the first class ticket. I was actually able to get some sleep." She sighed. "If only I could get my ears to stop popping. Anyways, I have some pointed questions to ask of the both of you. Will you both answer me honestly?"

Both London and Kim nodded.

"Good. Kim, you're my daughter and I love you. But even you have to admit that your inability to stay in any one place for a long time isn't making this situation with your daughter any easier. Now, if you want to have a relationship with your daughter, you have to remember you have one even when its not convenient for you. If London gives you another chance in her life, will you promise to be more present in her life? Will you keep in constant contact and visit her more often than every six years?"

Kim just looked back and forth between her mother and daughter. She nodded. "Yes."

Khun Yai turned to her granddaughter. "And London, if your mother does all of that, will you give her a second chance? Before you answer, I want to remind you of all the times the people you care about have given you second chances as well. And I know you've changed now, and I'm so proud to call you my granddaughter. Maybe you can give your mother a chance to do the same?"

London paused and sighed. "I guess I can..."

Khun Yai smiled. "Good. Now, I think a good start would be to have three generations of women in our family spend the next week together getting to know each other and spending time together. Do either of you have a problem with that?"

Kim and London looked at each other, both feeling a little intimidated by Khun Yai. "No, Mother. That's fine with me."

London nodded. "I can do that too, Khun Yai...but I'm supposed to be going to dinner with my boyfriend tonight."

Her grandmother smiled. "And you still will. I know I've been looking forward to meeting Todd in person for a while now, and I'm sure you're mother is as well. If he doesn't mind, we'd love for him to join us for dinner. Besides, if he likes you as much as you say he does, its high time he met the other half of your family."

"Well, I guess I can call him. I don't think he'll mind meeting you two."

"Good." Khun Yai looked around the suite and grinned. "I know I said we'd meet at a three star hotel, but I'll do my best to make do in this penthouse for a week..."

__To be Continued...__

**AN: On Friday, I had my own real life version of Twister happen here in KY. And like Cody, I began freaking out when I heard the tornado sirens. Fortunately, the tornadoes missed Lexington both to the south, north and east, and all we got was some rain and golf ball sized hail. Unfortunately, other places in KY, IN, TN, OH, AL, and GA were not as lucky. Some towns were completely wiped away, and the death toll continues to rise. On top of that, the weather has now changed to snow to complicate things further. So, if you wouldn't mind, please add the people who have had their lives affected by these storms to your prayer lists. Thank you.**


	20. Love is in the Air

_Episode 20_

__"Love is in the Air"__

__I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did.__

__Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them.__

__Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves.__

__And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so...__

__Boston__

The next couple of weeks in Boston were interesting ones. For one, everyone familiar with the situation was happy the Khun Yai had seemed to broker a peace treaty between London and her mother. Of course, for that week Kim was in town, everyone was on edge waiting for things to escalate again. But, they never did. By the time everyone left a week later, it seemed like real progress had been made. By no means was it a happy, normal mother/daughter relationship, but it was light years ahead of where it had been a week earlier.

Another week later, and everyone found themselves on Thursday, February 14th – Valentine's Day. While some people like London & Todd, Marion & Emma, and Esteban & Francesca had definite plans for that day, others did not. Late that afternoon, Zack and Maya were once again in their Philosophy & Film class watching another movie that they were grateful didn't have subtitles. And while they had watched some pretty awful ones before in the class, the one they were watching that day might take the cake as the most boring. Periodically, they would have to smack the other on the shoulder to keep them from falling asleep. Finally, about five o'clock, class was over, and they were free to go.

As she packed up her backpack, Maya yawned. "You know...I've know people sometimes go to the movies on Valentine's Day, but I seriously doubt that was one they would choose voluntarily..."

Zack let out a tired laugh. "Tell me about it. Oh, and by the way...good call on suggesting we grab those cappuccinos before class. Without it, there was no way I was going to stay awake through that monstrosity..."

"Same here." She sighed. "Unfortunately, I think I'm going to need a few more of them before the night is over..."

Zack turned and gave her a look. "Hot plans for tonight?"

Maya shook her head and laughed. "Oh yeah. My Intro to Nutrition book and I have big plans and are going to get very familiar with each other tonight. Unfortunately, I have a test at eight o'clock in the morning. I swear my teacher must have gotten recently dumped, and she's taking it out on us. She's worse than Tut ever was..."

"Wish you would have told me that. Maybe we could have set her and my Hospitality Law professor up. While my test isn't until 2:00 tomorrow, I'll be spending all night studying too. Oh, and to make matters even better, I have another exam in my Financial Accounting class on Monday afternoon." He laughed too. "I hope my two books don't get jealous with me spending Valentine's Day with one of them and then the weekend with the other."

Maya reached her finger to her eye and then looked at it. "Sorry. No tears here for you. I have an exam in my Human Anatomy class on Monday too. So, no sympathy as I'll be doing the same thing as you."

Zack shook his head. "Looks like both of us are looking at long weekends that will totally suck."

"Tell me about it. Plus, I found out yesterday that I have to work all of spring break, so the hits keep on coming for me. Since I'm the low man on the totem pole at the fit&rec center, I'll have to work while others with more seniority will have the week off to head to the beach."

"You get used to it. I already know Moseby will have me working a full week then too. The only good news I have is that Cody and Bailey won't be here that week shoving it into my face that they have two weeks off to do nothing."

Maya paused. "Didn't you tell me they spent their entire spring break last year holed up studying and doing school work?"

Zack paused. "Well...yeah. But they did it at the beach!"

She just laughed. "I'm sure that makes a huge difference then..."

"And you want to hear something else that really grinds my gears? Well, actually, it will probably grind yours more..."

"What's that?"

"Yale doesn't have eight o'clock classes. The earliest classes they offer start at nine!"

Maya shrugged. "Well, that would be nice. But to be perfectly honest, I'm actually getting used to them now. I've found myself waking up early without needing my alarm clock."

Zack sighed. "I know what you mean. When I first started working, getting up so early about killed me. Now, I've found myself waking up before my alarm clock goes off too..."

She laughed again. "I never thought I'd ever hear you say that. I remember you telling me about the elaborate way of waking yourself up that one Christmas morning."

"Yeah, well, such is my life now without having Cody or Mom or Marcus around to wake me up. Or do my laundry. Or clean up after me. Or cook my meals."

"You're place has always looked alright every time I've been there."

"Over Christmas, it was because I had Cody there to clean up. After that..." He mumbled something.

Maya smiled. "What was that? I couldn't quite make out that last part..."

Zack sighed again. "I decided I liked having everything somewhat organized. Tell anyone I said that, and I'll deny it! And I'll never be as bad as Cody is though!"

Maya laughed. "I don't think its possible to be as neat and organized as he is...I heard stories from Woody."

"I sure hope not." He shrugged. "Anyways, if we're both studying tonight, why don't we do it together?"

She just looked at him. "Are you serious?"

"Sure. At least we won't look like total losers spending our Valentine's Day alone. We can even take a break after a while to order a pizza."

"Well, I if you don't mind stopping by my room and letting me switch out books, I guess that would be alright." She paused and smiled. "On one condition though..."

"What's that?"

"Well, I'm going to need a study break on Saturday night too, and I have this gift certificate for buffalo wings. Know anyone who might want to join me and help me use it?"

Zack smiled. "Well, if you're going to twist my arm like that, I guess I can volunteer. And since there is one just down the street from the Tipton, why not just come over and study that day too?"

Maya just smiled to herself. Not her idea of a perfect Valentine's Day weekend...but it would do.

__New Haven__

On that Saturday evening, Gertie was getting reading in her room for her evening out with Tapeworm. More than that though, it was going to be their first Valentine's Day celebration as a couple, and she was anxiously looking forward to it. As she applied the last of her make up and checked herself out in the mirror, she heard the outer door of her dorm room open. She glanced out in the common area and saw Bailey coming back out of her bedroom.

"There you are. You were gone this morning before I even woke up."

Bailey just nodded. "Yeah, Cody and I got an early start studying this morning. I just stopped back by here to get new batteries for my scientific calculator. Cody and I are going to grab dinner in the dining hall and then head back to the library as soon we finish eating."

Gertie just shook her head. "That really sucks. I can't believe you two have to spend all Valentine's Day weekend studying. And wasn't it your organic chem class last semester that had a final the Monday after Halloween weekend?"

"Yeah." She shrugged. "But it is what it is. Nothing we can do about it."

"I'm so sorry you two didn't get a chance to really celebrate."

Bailey smiled. "Oh, we did. On Thursday, Cody sent me a dozen roses before we went out to dinner and a movie. That was just fine with me. I got to spend that day with the man I love...that's all I really wanted and needed."

Gertie nodded. "I guess so." She nodded over to their two end tables and laughed. "Looks like Dennis and Cody used the same florist too. Those two vases look very similar."

Bailey laughed too. "It wouldn't surprise me if they did."

"Well, I wish you both good luck studying tonight. And hopefully this will be the last time your professors do something so despicable as this."

"Oh, its not. This same professor also scheduled our second exam the Monday after spring break..."

Gertie had a look of disgust on her face. "Okay, that really sucks! That's not going to ruin your spring break is it?"

Bailey smiled and shook her head. "Not at all. Yeah, we're going to spend the second week of it in Boston studying for it and working on our EP&E papers, but those aren't due until that Thursday after we get back. Fortunately, our other professors are being much more kind and reasonable. Not this upcoming Monday but the next, we have a Spanish test. And the the next week, the week before spring break, we have our seminar papers due on Wednesday and a Cell Biology exam on Thursday. So, while these next few weeks won't be any fun, the rest of our classes will be taken care of for a while when we head out on our trip."

"That's good. So, you guys are really going on a week tour of old Civil War battlefields?"

Bailey got excited as she answered. "Oh yeah! We thought about starting with Fort Sumter, but with only a week now, we modified our plans. Now, we're going to hit Gettsyburg then down to Antietam down to Appomattox Court House and then up to Manassas/Bull Run. Finally, on the Saturday in between weeks, we'll begin the long drive back to Boston stopping to see a few places in Philadelphia on the way. Plus, I've found all kinds of fun things to stop and see along our way! It'll be just like the spring break we had our senior year of high school..." She paused. "...for the most part. I don't think either one of us will be in any danger of being merged with someone else..."

Gertie just gave her a look. "Sounds like...fun. Are you two still planning on camping out?"

"Yeah. Instead of getting each other gifts for Valentine's Day this year, we pooled the money to rent camping equipment. This is going to be the best trip ever!"

__Boston__

That Saturday night, Zack and Maya had both finally gotten to stopping points in their studying where they felt comfortable calling it a night. So, they left the hotel and headed on down the street to BW3s. And even though it was close to 9:30 when they got there, the place was packed. As they waited for a table, Zack turned to Maya.

"Okay, either there's a big sporting event I don't know about or this neighborhood is full of cheap dates..."

Maya laughed. "Awww...Come on. Its not the bad."

"Oh please. Our senior year, I had to blow a week's salary on Valentine's Day in the Coral Room."

She frowned. "I didn't know that. I would have been just as happy eating on the Skydeck or in the Aqualounge."

He rolled his eyes and groaned. "Great. Information that would have been useful to me two years ago..." He shook his head. "Stupid Cody..."

"Why do you say that?"

"Well, he went all out romancing Bailey that night, so I felt I had to keep up..."

Maya smiled at him. "Zack...we are not, were not or never will be Cody and Bailey. You should have learned that lesson with that...that...that...whatever it was with all the hay bails and country motif. What worked for Cody with Bailey wasn't going to work for you with me."

"Again...information that would have been useful to me years ago..."

Finally, a table was ready for them, and they sat on their stools relaxing. And as they did, they kept talking.

"So, how did things go with London, her mother and her grandmother?"

Zack shrugged. "Better than expected we think. The police were never called, and they all seemed to be civil to each other when they left. So, Moseby and I are hopeful that their relationship can be repaired. I mean, after everything London has done for me, I'd like to see something good happen for her."

Maya nodded. "Me too..." She paused and remembered something. "Oh yeah. Speaking of parents, you mentioned earlier that your Dad visited you a couple of weeks ago. I bet your psyched that he was back in the country safe and sound."

Zack nodded. "I admit, I was pretty relived." He paused. "You know...the more I think about it, the more I think you might be right. Maybe I did imagine that whole fortune teller person? I mean...its been over three months, and everyone in my family is doing just fine..."

She shrugged. "Maybe so. So, did your Dad tell you any wild and crazy stories from his European tour?"

"Actually, he did. You remember me telling you about our visit to Sweden to the town named after my family?"

"Yeah. What about it?"

Zack went ahead and explained to Maya the same story Kurt had told him and Cody.

Maya just looked at him. "Let me get this straight. A woman you never knew existed who basically lived her life as a hermit left you and Cody both something in her will?"

"Pretty much."

"Did your Dad say what it was?"

He shook his head. "Not really. All he told me was that it was some sort of old family heirloom or something." He grinned. "Maybe its one of those old viking helmets with the horns? That would be pretty cool!"

Maya laughed. "I doubt it. Real viking helmets didn't have horns...despite what the ones in Minnesota try to tell us."

"Oh..."

"Don't worry about it. I'm sure it will be something nice. Plus, you'll have a piece of your heritage around. That's pretty cool to think about."

"Yeah, I guess so."

She smiled. "Just think. You could be like your ancestors. They pillaged, plundered and took no prisoners in foreign lands. You'll be doing the same thing in the hotel industry."

Zack had to laugh at that. "I guess so..." He paused. "Though...I don't think London would be very happy if I pillaged and plundered the company. In fact, the authorities might not look to kindly to that either..."

Maya laughed. "You know what I mean."

"I know. Oh, and by the way, I finally told Moseby about my idea to go for a MBA. You were right. He is absolutely behind me, and he's going to help me prepare for it and talk to London about it."

She smiled. "Good for you. I'm sure London will be on board too."

"I hope so. Anyways, lets forget about anything school related for the rest of the night." He shook his head. "I still can't believe we spent an entire Saturday studying."

"True, but look at it this way. Its bitterly cold outside and snowing. Its not like we had very many better options." She grinned. "Besides, you get to walk back to your place and crash. I still have to head across town before I get to do that..."

"Well, I appreciate you coming over to study lately. For some reason, I feel like I've been more productive with you around to vent and rant and rave to. I guess having someone around to get that out of my system to helps me get over it and focus again."

"I know the feeling."

About that time, there food was delivered to them. Zack held up his soft drink. "Here's here to a Valentine's Day weekend that I was sure was going to suck...but turned out to be alright."

Maya lifter her cup and smiled. "I'll drink to that."

__Sterling Memorial Library on Yale's Campus__

As Cody and Bailey sat in their hidden study area they had found the previous year, both were engrossed in studying their notes. Every so often, they would glance up at their text books to verify something before turning back to what they were looking at. Finally, they both finished up studying a chapter and turned to the other and sighed.

"I'm so glad this is our last chemistry class..."

Cody nodded. "Tell me about it." He paused. "Well, unless you count biochemistry, but its technically a biology course here."

"True. And its not that this information is all that difficult. Its not..."

He smiled at her. "You just wish you weren't studying it right now."

Bailey nodded and sighed. "Yeah. I mean, I know we went out on Thursday night. And Cody, I loved every minute of it. But I saw Gertie getting dressed up for her night out with Tapeworm, and I guess I got a little jealous of them being able to have a big night out."

"I know what you mean. I remember last year and getting to share a horse drawn carriage with you through Central Park. This year, we're sharing highlighters and batteries."

She sighed again. "But I guess this is something we need to get used to, huh? As doctors, our patients and responsibilities with often clash with what we really want to do with our personal lives."

"Especially our first couple of years out." He smiled at her. "That's why I'm grateful we're going through this together. We'll have each other who understands the pressures and restraints the other is under."

"That's a good point."

Cody grabbed her hand. "But I promise you now that nothing will ever stop me from trying to romance you. It may be cheesy at times or maybe a little out there, but that's just me. Like I said before, I fully plan on chasing after you whether it be in the halls of medical school, the hospital we work out, our future house or the retirement home our kids stick us in..."

Bailey laughed. "I know you will. And in all those places, I fully plan on letting you catch me."

He looked around and grinned. "You know, there are some hallways here..."

She shook her head. "I don't think so...we'd probably get thrown out for making a scene." She smiled at him. "But I do appreciate the offer." She leaned in and kissed his cheek. "Thank you, Cody Bear."

"So, that helped, huh?"

She smiled. "Yeah, it did."

"Good." He smiled back. "I know we would prefer to be somewhere else right now, but we both know this is where we need to be. But just remember - in a few weeks, we'll be on the road for our next great adventure."

Bailey nodded. "Yeah, we will." She paused and reached for her backpack. "Oh, I haven't shown you this yet. I prepared us an itinerary for our week with things we'll want to see, driving directions and our reservation confirmations for the camp grounds we're going to use."

Cody took it from her and looked at. Upon reviewing it all, he nodded. "Looks good to me." He smiled at her. "I really can't wait to go now."

"Me either." She paused. "There is one part that doesn't make any sense to me though..."

"What's that?"

"Well, there's this place in Virginia that says its the largest ball of twine in America. But I could have swore we saw that two years ago..."

Cody winced as he had a flash back of finding twine around his shoe and looking back to see a long line of it trailing behind him. "Ummm...Well, we can check it out and compare the two. We'll find out ourselves which one is bigger..." He mumbled to himself. "...though I'm betting on this one..."

Bailey was still looking at the itinerary and didn't hear him say the last part. "Good point."

"Hey, we're at a breaking point anyways. How about we head up to the library cafe and get us a snack. I know it won't be a candlelit dinner..."

She turned to him and smiled. "No, its won't, but it sounds perfect to me. Cody, I was wrong. We didn't need to go out and have a grand night on the town. Valentine's Day isn't about how you celebrate it but who you celebrate it with. And in that regard, I wouldn't trade places with anyone."

__A Restaurant Near Yale's Campus__

After having dinner together, Gertie and Tapeworm were sitting at their table talking and laughing as they were waiting on their dessert.

"So, was this place to your liking?"

Gertie smiled at him. "Definitely. Its fancy enough to be for a special occasion yet still casual enough to still be us."

Tapeworm grinned right back at her. "Plus the menu was in English, so we didn't need a translator."

She laughed. "Very true." She paused. "I guess we've found our place, huh?"

"Works for me. I like it here."

"Me too. It just screams us. And I can't think of a better place to celebrate the first true Valentine's Day of my life."

"Same here. And I can't think of a better person to celebrate it with."

Gertie smiled. "Awww..." She leaned over and kissed him. "Thank you for that. And thank you for proving to me that there are still good guys out there. At my boarding school, there was an all boy's school across the lake. But all the guys there were pretentious, elitist snobs. I wanted absolutely nothing to do with them."

He laughed. "So...my mediocrity is an asset, huh?"

She shook her head. "That's not what I meant at all. I meant that its a pleasure to be with a guy who is comfortable in his own skin and with who he is." She smiled. "And it doesn't hurt that he's cute too."

Tapeworm blushed. "Really?"

"Of course. You've told me before what your initial thoughts on me were. You're no slouch yourself, Dennis. And beyond that, you are a really good guy."

"And here I had always heard good guys finished last..."

Gertie shook her head again. "I've never understood that at all. Some of the girls said in high school they would hang out with the bad boys while they were young before finding them a good guy to settle down with. That made absolutely no sense to me whatsoever."

He smiled. "Well, they're going to be in for a rude awakening when they find out all the good guys have already been snatched up by the good girls."

She smiled back at him. "Well, I've already got mine, so let them learn that lesson the hard way." She paused. "Speaking of you and me, I got a call from Daddy this morning. Someone else wanted to use the beach cabin in a couple of weeks and traded him equal time at their time share at a ski resort up in the Green Mountains. How does that sound for a spring break destination?"

Tapeworm nodded. "Sounds good to me. Do you ski?"

"Well, a little, but I'm probably still classified as a beginner."

He smiled. "I'll teach you then. Living in Alaska, you had to know how to ski to be able to get around some days."

Gertie laughed. "You teaching me? Sounds good to me..."

"And on our way up, we can stop by and let you meet my family. My parents are very anxious to finally meet you, and my little sister wants actual proof that you exist..."

"I'll be happy to provide her with some then. I just hope your family likes me as much as mine likes you. Mom thought you were a very nice young man, and you were golden with my Dad after you helped him hook up his new surround sound system up."

Tapeworm laughed. "Well, that's good I guess..."

She teased him. "However, you do have a strike against you. My little brother thought you were pretty cool too after you fixed his laptop. If he likes you, I may have to rethink things..."

Later that night, Tapeworm walked Gertie to her door to say goodnight to her. And as they did, they shared a few kisses with each other. After the last one, she pulled back and smiled at him.

"Thank you for such a wonderful evening. I loved every minute of it."

"Me too, though, I have to admit that the past few minutes have been my highlight..."

She laughed. "Same here." She paused. "I guess Valentine's Day is a good day for us. This was my best one ever and last year comes in second. Even though we were still just friends then, I just had so much fun." She grinned and kissed him again. "Though I much prefer ending the night like this..."

He laughed too. "Definitely. Just think. Last year, we were just friends eating wings at BW3s, and now this. Kind of shows you what can happen in a year..."

__To be Continued...__


	21. Blizzard, Part 1

_Episode 21_

__"Blizzard, Part 1"__

__I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did.__

__Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them.__

__Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves.__

__And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so...__

__New Haven__

Like Bailey had said, the next three weeks tested everyone's mettle as they were all bombarded with papers and exams. And while on some days it seemed like spring break would never get there, it finally did. On the Friday afternoon before their respective breaks, both Yale and BU locked up their classrooms as students from both schools began a mass exodus towards a beach or other relaxing location. In fact, by five o'clock that afternoon, Berkeley College was almost a ghost town. While Cody and Bailey would soon be off on their own adventure themselves, they weren't in the same rush as many of their class mates. They spent that Friday afternoon taking care of mundane things such as doing their organic chem lab II report while they did their laundry. And when it was done, they packed rather heavily as they didn't know what kind of weather they would encounter on their trip. Afterall, weather in early March can range from freezing cold to warm sunny days. Plus, they knew they would be camping out with out the benefit of a heater, so they made sure to pack extra warm clothes and blankets just in case for at night. Once they finished that, it was late enough they could move their car to a closer parking lot without worrying about it getting ticketed or towed. And while they were out moving it, they headed to the store to pick up their rented camping gear along with other 'necessities' they thought they would need for the next week. By the time they went to bed, they had everything organized and ready to be loaded into the car the morning.

On Saturday morning, Cody and Bailey were up early, showered, dressed and going over their checklist one last time to make sure they had everything when Tapeworm stuck his head out of his room.

"You guys are getting an early start...Its only 7:30."

Cody grinned. "Well, we do have a five hour drive ahead of us to Gettysburg, and we want to get to our campsite before dark so we can can see what we're doing trying to put up our tent for the first time."

Tapeworm shook his head. "More power to the both of you." He paused and laughed. "Though, picturing Cody trying to put up a tent in my mind, I just wish I was going to be there to see it. This won't be anything like our trip to math camp."

"I know." Cody wrapped his arm around Bailey's waist. "But I'll gladly trade running water and electricity for having a much better looking camp...mate."

Bailey laughed. "Thanks...I think." She turned to Tapeworm. "What time are you guys heading out?"

"This afternoon. We just have to be back in Amherst in time to have dinner with the folks. We'll hang out there for a few days before we head on up to the slopes." He grinned at Cody. "And no offense, but you aren't the only one who will be spending their trip with someone a whole lot cuter."

"No disagreements here." Cody paused. "I hope Wendall wouldn't mind either..."

"I doubt it..." Tapeworm paused. "Wonder what happened to him too..." He shook his head. "Anyways, when you get back to Boston, tell Zack I had 'hey'."

"Will do. And tell your parents I said 'hey' as well."

Tapeworm paused and his eyes lit up. "Oh yeah. Speaking of my parents, my Dad suggested a solution to us for the problem we're going to have at the end of the semester."

Bailey frowned. "A solution to what problem?"

"Well, with bigger rooms, we all now have some real furniture. And your car is no bigger than mine. There's no way we can haul everything home in their assembled forms..."

Cody and Bailey both looked around the common room and realization hit them as to what he was talking about.

"You're right. What are we going to do with our furniture over the summer?"

Tapeworm grinned. "I was just getting to that. He suggested we do some measurements and rent the smallest storage unit available that everything will fit in. He figures we'll need it for four months, and with four of us, that works out to each of us paying for a month apiece. He'll even let me borrow his truck for a week so we can haul everything over to it."

"Can't those things get kind of pricey?"

"Not if we get a small one. Besides, I saw a notice on one of the bulletin boards downstairs. There's a place a few miles from here who is practically begging for business from Yale students and are willing to give one heck of a discount. By the prices listed, I think we can get by for thirty bucks a person."

Cody and Bailey looked at each other and nodded. "Works for me."

Bailey laughed. "And I'm sure Gertie and I will enjoy watching you two getting to show off your new muscles to us."

Cody turned to his roommate and sighed. "That's code for we get to do all the heavy lifting."

Tapeworm nodded. "I already kind of figured as much." He shrugged and yawned. "Oh well, you guys have fun. I'm going back to bed." And with that, Tapeworm went back into his room.

Bailey turned to Cody and smiled. "You ready to hit the road?"

He nodded. "Yeah, lets gets out of here." He smiled back. "I have a feeling this will be a trip neither of us will ever forget..."

__Boston__

On the Wednesday afternoon of that week, Zack found himself sitting outside of Moseby's office looking over the presentation for an MBA he had prepared and was soon to be delivering to London. And as he got to the final page, he glanced down and noticed a post-it note attached to it. It had a smiley face on it with the words 'Knock'em Dead Today! Good Luck, Maya'. Zack just shook his head and a smile broke out on his face. But before he could think too much more about it, he heard Moseby's secretary call his name and tell him he could go inside. Standing up, he gathered his things and headed into Moseby's office. And when Moseby looked up from his computer, he grinned and whistled.

"You're wearing a suit? Consider me impressed." He paused. "Last time I remember you wearing one was when you temporarily became your mother's agent. Lets hope this works out better for everyone than that time..."

Zack shrugged. "Yeah, well, I figured this was a good enough reason to break out the monkey suit. Will London be here soon?"

"Yeah, she should be here any minute now. She was coming straight here from Arturo's special VIP sneak peek of his new spring line. So brace yourself. No matter how ridiculous she looks in what she comes in wearing, just smile and compliment her on it."

Zack nodded. "Got it."

"And assuming she signs off on this, I've made some phone calls over to BU for you to find out a few things. I..."

But before Moseby could continue, the door opened, and London strolled into the office grinning. Zack and Moseby just stared at her in shock or more particularly, at her outfit. If they didn't know better, they could have sworn she was dressed as a metermaid.

She smiled. "I know! You guys have never seen anything like it before, right? Even I have to admit that Arturo has outdone himself this time. Its part of his new 'Women of Authority' line." She paused. "Though, a few times on the way in, people have yelled at me for giving them parking tickets." She shrugged. "Oh well, its much better than that hideous line he based off of Bailey's wardrobe." She took a seat next to Zack. "So, what's the purpose of this little meeting anyways?"

Moseby nodded to Zack that the floor was all his. Zack stood up and was about to begin his presentation when London interrupted him again.

"Is that the same suit that my double bought you?"

Zack paused and looked down at it. "Ummm...I think so."

She shrugged. "Well...I'll give her one thing. She knows a good suit when she sees it. Anyways, you were about to tell me why we're meeting here today?"

He nodded. "Right." He handed London and Moseby a copy of the prospectus he had prepared. "London, you took a chance on me when you decided to see if I could handle working here and going to college. And based on my grades and performance reviews so far, I think I've been pretty successful at both. Well, I've learned that the hospitality industry is something I actually know a lot about, and I think I can be pretty good at it in the future. I mean...after living in either a hotel or on board a luxury cruise ship since I was twelve, I was bound to pick up a few things..."

London interrupted him again. "Will you just spit it out already? I don't have all day..."

Zack nodded again and readied himself to drop the big bomb on her. "Well, I'm on pace to graduate in two more years. But I don't think I'm ready to be done with school just yet. With your blessing, I'd like to continue on with my education and get my MBA..."

London just looked at Zack for a minute before shrugging again. "Okay."

Zack just stared at London incredulously. "Okay? Just like that? I've got an entire presentation here about the benefits it would bring to the company and how I would be trained to know not only the hospitality side of things but also the business and management sides as well..."

London looked down at the packet he had given her. "And I bet you have everything right here like you say you do. But would you rather waste my time and risk me saying 'no' when you're done or take a 'yes' right now and call it a day?"

Zack paused to think and quickly sat down. "And I'm done..."

She laughed. "I kind of figured as much. And Zack, I'm impressed. This was much better than the last time you pitched an idea to me. If you had done all of this back then, Tipton Industries might be producing your super suit right now instead of the one it currently is..." She paused. "...if you two don't mind, forget I said that..."

He just looked at her. "Now you tell me..."

"But all jokes aside, I'm really proud of you. You're taking initiative, and that's a good thing. But even better, you cleared it with me first. Excellent work." She checked her watch. "And if we're done here, I have another meeting to go to with Daddy. Moseby, I'll expect you to further guide him in what he needs to do for this and will take care of everything like you do now."

Moseby nodded. "Of course." He paused. "Does this meeting with your father have anything to do with...you know?"

London smiled. "Uh huh. We sign the final contracts on it today!"

Zack looked back and forth between the two of them in confusion. "Final contracts for what?"

She paused. "Well...its on a need to know basis. We're keeping it very hush hush."

"Hey, you said yourself you wanted me to be able to take over here one day. Shouldn't I be in the loop then?"

Moseby just shrugged as London paused to think. "You're making all kinds of good points today. I need to get used to that. Alright, the Tipton Hotels division of Tipton Inc. and London Inns are doing a joint venture." She smiled. "We're building a new cruise ship to be called the S.S. Tipton II!"

__Somewhere in Virginia...I Think__

The first couple of days of their trip had been spent at Gettysburg before heading to Sharpsburg, Maryland on Monday afternoon. By Wednesday Cody and Bailey had spent their second full day exploring the Antietam National Battlefield before packing up again to move on to their next destination. Late that afternoon, they were on their way south towards Appomattox Court House - well, to be specific, the campground nearby to it. But on their way, there was an out of the way historic bed & breakfast/restaurant that Bailey had found online and wanted to try. Supposedly, it was where the Army of Northern Virginia had camped out after retreating from Antietam, and the actual B&B had been a hospital for the Confederate army. As it was out of the way, they left the interstate and made their way along some rural and windy roads before they finally found it. And Cody had to admit – the food and aura of history was well worth the detour. As they waited to digest their slices of fresh pecan pie and sip their coffees, Cody smiled at Bailey.

"So, halfway through our week, what do you think so far?"

Bailey just smiled back at him. "Cody, I'm having the most amazing time. You read all about these battles in books or lectures, but being on the actual grounds where they happened..." She shook her head. "...its completely different."

Cody kept smiling. "I know. Its kind of like being back on the boat. We got to see all of those places up close and learn by experiencing them first hand. I've even been keeping a journal so I don't forget anything we've seen."

"Yeah. And when you're out there, you can almost get the feeling of what those soldiers were experiencing...without people actually shooting at you. Can you imagine getting ready for the battle and not knowing whether or not that was going to be the last day you would ever have on earth?"

He teased her. "So, is that why we're camping out so we can get an even more authentic experience?"

She just looked at him. "Cody, we have modern camping gear and plenty of food. They'd kill to have what we have. Compared to what they had, we have the equivalent of London's penthouse..."

"You're probably right." He paused. "So, tell me. What was it like being at Cemetery Ridge seeing where your distant uncle made his date with destiny?"

Bailey sighed and shook her head. "Its so unfair! The blame deserves to be on Lee or Longstreet. But oh no...they have to call it Pickett's Charge!"

Cody grabbed her hand and rubbed it soothingly. "Hey...You don't have to tell me what its like for your family name to be despised and drug through the mud because of something that was someone else's fault..." He grinned. "And look at it this way...at least neither of our last names are Custer."

That brought a small smile to her face. "That's true I guess."

He smiled back at her. "And...I've didn't throw fish at you out there because of what happened in the past..."

"You're never going to forget that, are you? I said I was sorry. If I had known it was you, I never would have thrown them in the first place."

Cody teased her. "Uh huh. Like I'm supposed to believe that."

Bailey teased him right back. "You'll believe it when you're sleeping outside of the tent tonight..."

He paused and briefly imagined being outside and subjected to having all kinds of creepy and crawly animals running rampant all over him. He shuddered. "Okay, I believe you..."

She smiled at him. "You were just picturing animals crawling all over you, weren't you?"

"Well, when you've almost been squeezed to death by a snake, you'll know the terror it brings!"

"And here I thought you were only afraid of penguins..."

"Snakes now too. I hate snakes..."

Bailey laughed. "Okay there...Indiana."

Cody laughed too. "Speaking of states, I can now cross West Virginia off of my list of states I had never been in before."

"Me too. Too bad we weren't closer to Ohio or Kentucky. We could have knocked them off too."

"True, but could you imagine the looks on Woody and Addison's faces if they found out we had been in Ohio and not come up and seen them?

"Good call...They wouldn't be happy at all." She checked her watch. "Speaking of good calls, we better get back on the road. As it is, its going to be dark outside when we try to put up our tent tonight."

He smiled. "Well, fortunately, we've had a few days of doing it before, so we should have it down pat by now. And, we can always use the headlights on the car to illuminate things for a little while if we have to."

Bailey laughed. "True. Come on. Lets get go pay and get out of here."

After paying, they stepped back outside and were kind of surprised to see flurries falling.

"Snow?"

Bailey shrugged. "Well, we are still in the Appalachian Mountains. I'm sure the further south and closer to sea level we get, it'll be back in the 60's again."

__Boston__

To say Zack was shocked would be an understatement. There was going to be another S.S. Tipton?

"London, are you serious?"

"Of course I am. But this one will be a little bit different than the other one. Since I'm no longer in school, there's no need to bring back Seven Seas High. Its gone for good especially after it came back to bite Daddy in the butt after the fiasco with Cody's transcripts. Instead, we're going to convert what would have been all the student cabins into more economically priced ones that customers of London Inns should be able to afford. That's why its a joint venture."

Zack nodded in understanding though he was a little sad to hear Seven Seas High would stay gone. But that's when something occurred to him, and he turned to Moseby. "Are you going to go back and manage this new one like you did the old one?"

Moseby shook his head and laughed. "Nope. Actually, I'm quite happy here. Besides, with no Seven Seas High, there would be no place for Emma to teach at. Plus, she likes it here in Boston as she's fairly close to Vermont but not too close that her mother is always visiting us."

London spoke up. "Actually, the new manager will be Esteban. At least for a little while anyways. He and Francesca thought it sounded like the adventure of a lifetime before they settled down to have kids in a few years."

Zack nodded again thinking that made sense. "So, when's the launch date?"

"It should be ready to set sail not this summer but hopefully by next summer. At least, that's the plan. Anyways, if I don't hurry, I'm going to be late. See you two later." And with that, London grabbed her purse and left the office quickly. Zack was just left there sitting shaking his head.

"The more things change, the more they stay the same."

Moseby nodded. "Very true. Anyways, now that London's on board, I do have a few things to go over with you."

Zack nodded and sat down. "Alright, lay it on me. Lets hear it."

"First of all, you know you're going to have to continue to keep your grades up, right?"

"Yeah, I kind of figured I would have to. Moseby, I promise I'll do my best."

"That's all I can ask. Second, you'll have to take the GMAT - the Graduate Management Admission Test. I would highly recommend you have already taken it by this time next year. The earlier you can take it, the earlier you get your scored back, the earlier you can apply, the earlier you'll get your responses back."

Zack nodded again. "Alright, I'll check out the website when I get home for test dates."

Moseby nodded. "Good. The third thing is what we talked about last time."

"About me getting that minor?"

"Yeah. Turns out you that with what you've already taken, you only need five more classes to complete a minor in business administration and management." He paused. "However, there is good news and bad news..."

Zack slumped back into his seat. "Of course there's some bad news. Why wouldn't there be?"

Moseby just gave him a look. "As I was saying, the good news is that two of the classes – financial accounting and managerial accounting will be basically be replays of classes you will have already completed by the time you take them. So, you should have a leg up on everyone else going into those."

Zack paused as he considered that. "I actually like the sound of that. But lets forget the good news. What's the bad news then?"

"The first course you would have to take is a rather intensive course to catch up on on business basics – a six credit course to be exact."

He frowned. "That doesn't sound like any fun at all..."

"It can't be helped, Zack. Its the prerequisite to the other four classes, so you'll have to get it out of the way as soon as possible."

Zack sighed and shrugged. "Alright...I'll take it next fall. That wasn't as bad as I had feared..."

Moseby just looked at him again before dropping a bomb of his own. "Actually...you'll be taking it this summer. In fact, I've already registered you for it..."

Zack shook his head and groaned. "Summer school again? Come on Moseby, have a heart! I've been in school nonstop since the fall of 2011. I need a break!"

"I know you have." Moseby smiled. "But do this this summer, and I promise you I'll find some way to make it up to you later..."

__Still Somewhere in Virginia...I'm Almost Pretty Sure This Time__

Cody and Bailey were driving back towards the interstate down the windy, country road they had come in on – or at least they thought they were. Seems those flurries they encountered as they walked out of the restaurant had quickly escalated into a full fledged blizzard. It was really coming down now and had coated everything with a white blanket. And even with his wipers on the highest speed and high beams and fog lights on, Cody was having problems seeing the road ten feet in front of him.

"Bails, I really need your help here. I can hardly see a thing, so if you see anything I should be aware of, just shout it out to me..."

She nodded. "I will." She paused as she scanned in front of her. "You know, even back in Kettlecorn or New Haven, I've never seen snow come down this hard this fast before."

"It has to be due to us being in the mountains. Do you remember how long it took us to get to the restaurant once we left the interstate?"

Bailey shook her head. "I'm sorry, Cody, but I don't. I wasn't paying attention to it while I reviewed our guidebook. I really wish I had been now."

"Well, I'm not sure it really matters now because I don't dare go over fifteen miles per hour. Thank goodness this car is all wheel drive. If it wasn't, we could be in some serious trouble..."

Bailey sighed. "This is all my fault. If I hadn't wanted to go to that place, we'd never be in this situation right now..."

"Sweetie, its no one's fault. Lets just concentrate on us getting back to the interstate. I'll feel a whole lot better once we do..."

"You're right." She paused as she thought of something. "Or we could turn around and head back to the restaurant. After all, it was part of a bed and breakfast. Right now, I wouldn't mind getting off the roads until this storm has passed."

Cody nodded. "I think that might be our best bet." He paused as he looked forward. "That is if we can..."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, this is a very narrow road. There isn't enough room on it to do a turnabout, and with the snow now covering everything, I don't see any roads or driveways to pull into and back out. And I don't dare risk getting us stuck in a ditch."

Bailey looked out the windshield to see if she could see anything, but she was having as much trouble as Cody was. Well, she was until she saw something she thought might be useful to them.

"Cody! Up there about a hundred yards. You see that opening in the fence?"

He peered out and did indeed see what she was referring to. "Yeah, I see it. Think we should give it a shot?"

"I say we go for it."

Cody nodded, and slowed down even further as the approached the break in the fence. Slowly, he turned the car into into the opening. And as he did, both were holding their breath hoping that there actually was a drive or at least gravel underneath all of the snow. When the car didn't sink into a ditch, both let out a sigh of relief. After Cody got the car completely off the road, he put the car into park and took a deep breath.

"I just wanted to catch my breath and wipe the sweat off of my hands before we turn around."

Bailey smiled at him. "I completely understand. Take your time, Sweetie."

He took one more deep breath, wiped his hands on his jeans and put the car in reverse. But something wasn't right. He was putting pressure on the gas pedal, but the car wasn't moving backwards.

"What the..."

Bailey opened her door and looked behind them. She groaned when she saw what was happening. "The tires are just spinning in place. They aren't able to get any traction."

Cody let off the gas to think. "Alright, let me put it in park, and we'll switch spots. You ease on to the gas, and I'll get out and push. Hopefully, that might do something and get us moving again."

Unfortunately, that did absolutely nothing as the tires just kept spinning in place. No matter how hard Cody pushed, the car still was not moving at all. Giving up on that idea, Cody climbed into the passenger seat to warm up.

"Okay, that didn't work. On to plan B. Time to call AAA." He pulled out his wallet to get his AAA card and then pulled out his cell phone. But when he tried to make a call, he couldn't. "Bails...I can't get a phone signal..."

Bailey pulled out her phone to see if she could get one on hers, but she groaned. "Neither can I...I guess we're stuck here until another car comes by. Hopefully, we can flag them down."

Cody just frowned at her. "Ummm. Sweetie. We haven't see any other cars on this road coming up or down since we left the restaurant..."

She just looked at him. "Cody...are you saying what I think you're saying?"

He just nodded sadly. "I'm afraid so. We're trapped in a blizzard out in the middle of nowhere. And according to the thermometer on the dashboard, the temperature has been rapidly dropping for the past hour. Unless we find some kind of help or a way to get out of here soon, we could freeze to death..."

__To be Continued...__

____**AN: Yeah, the last chapter was literally the calm before the storm lol. I'll keep my promise though. If UK wins the SEC Tourney tomorrow, a new chapter will be posted tomorrow night. Though, it will be after the selection show. And if the NCAA screws over UK like I'm fully expecting them too, I might be livid for a while. Oh well...March Madness...you gotta love it!**


	22. Blizzard, Part 2

_Episode 22_

__"Blizzard, Part 2"__

__I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did.__

__Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them.__

__Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves.__

__And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so...__

__The Middle of Nowhere, Virginia__

Bailey was completely stunned by what Cody had just said about them possibly freezing to death, but once she took a few moments to think and consider the situation they found themselves in, she had to admit to herself that he was right. They were indeed stranded in the middle of nowhere with no way to contact anyone which meant they were in a whole lot of trouble, and if they didn't do something soon, they could both very well be looking at their final nights on earth. Bailey racked her brain to try to think of a solution to their dilemma when she suddenly had an idea.

"Can't we just stay here in the car? It'll protect us from the elements, and we can wrap ourselves up in the blankets we have in the back. Plus, the car has a heater."

Cody paused to consider that before shaking his head. "Maybe, but for how long though? Bails, we only have a quarter tank of gas left. Remember, we were going to fill up again when we got back to the interstate. How long will what we have last us? And even if we just use the battery, how long before we completely drain it without the alternator running to keep it recharged?"

Bailey sighed again knowing Cody was right. But he continued on. "So even if we did stay in here and try to make it, with the way its still snowing and the way the temperature keeps dropping, we could be two frozen popsicles inside of an even larger block of ice by morning..."

She wasn't ready to give up though. "Cody, then we have to do something else! I refuse to have us both die out here like this! After everything else we've survived, no way!"

This time, it was Cody who sighed in defeat. "If you have any ideas, I'm all ears. I've been racking my brain, but I've got nothing..."

Bailey paused to think again. There just had to be something they could do. She rationed that they were both very highly intelligent people, so between the two of them, surely they could come up with some way for them to survive. Staring straight ahead out the windshield watching the snow fall, Bailey kept thinking and thinking when it suddenly hit her. Excitedly, she turned to Cody and grabbed his arm.

"I've got it!"

Cody just looked at her with hope. "Yeah? Got what?"

"This drive we turned into to turn around. Surely, it has to lead somewhere, doesn't it? I mean...I think if we get out and follow it, we'll find something or someone who can help us!"

He stopped to consider her idea and found himself slowly nodding. It certainly sounded logical to him, and either way, it was a way better option that just sitting there and doing nothing. So, he smiled at her.

"I think your right, Sweetie. Alright, lets get our bags out of the trunk. We're going to need to get our coats, gloves, sweatshirts, wool socks and anything else that will keep us as warm as possible." He shook his head and exhaled. "I sure am glad I decided to pack my big boots at the last minute..."

Bailey nodded. "Good idea. What about our other gear?"

"We'll have to keep them here except for grabbing our flashlights and your Swiss Army Knife. We don't know what we'll find or even how long we'll be out in the elements. If we take everything, it'll just slow and bog us down."

"True. And if we do find something, we can always come back for everything else later."

"Lets get moving then. We don't have time to waste."

So, after adding as many warm layers as they could and grabbing their flashlights, Cody and Bailey began heading down what they thought was the drive way. Unfortunately, not being sure where they were going or what they should be looking for and the weather continuing to come down hard, they moved along at a very slow pace. And for almost a half hour, they just kept trudging their way along through the snow. But as every additional minute passed by, their level of hope of finding anything of use to them was beginning to wane. Just as they were about to give up and turn back to the car, they saw it.

Up in the distance, they could see a small cabin sitting there underneath the canopies of a few trees. Both just stared at it and blinked several times before looking at each other.

"Cody? Is that what I hope it is?"

"I sure hope its what you hope it is. I don't think its an oasis as we're not in the desert, and there is enough water in all forms around us to keep us from getting dehydrated. I say we go check it out!"

So, with the springs back in their steps, they made a beeline straight for the cabin. Upon getting finally getting to it, they walked up to the front door and tried to open it. Unfortunately for them, it was locked.

"Cody, what do we do now?"

He just studied the door for a minute and noticed there wasn't a deadbolt lock. "Bails, I have an idea."

He reached into his wallet and pulled out his AAA card. "This may come in handy after all. Thank you Zack for teaching me how to do this. I honestly never thought it would ever come in handy..." And with that, he jimmied the card into the lock before the both heard a click unlocking the door.

Cody turned to Bailey and smiled. "Looks like all of the years of Zack dragging me into his crazy schemes finally paid off. It might actually save our lives..."

Bailey smiled back at him. "Hey, it worked, and that's all I care about right now."

"Lets check this place out then, and see what we have to work with."

Cody tried to open the door, but even though it was unlocked, the door was jammed. Both looked at it again and determined that it was probably frozen. So, Bailey grabbed the door handle as Cody wrapped his arms around her waist. On the count of the three, they pulled as hard as they could. After a few seconds, the door suddenly swung open. Unfortunately for Cody and Bailey though, their momentum caused them to fly back, and they both landed in a snow bank. And to make matters worse, the act of the door opening had jarred loose some of the snow on the roof, and it began to slide down towards them in a mini avalanche. Bailey and Cody could only sit there and look up as a load of snow was coming right at them.

__Boston__

Several hundred miles away, Zack had finally returned back to his suite at the Tipton after his long and tiring day at the office. And once he did, he immediate sank down in to the couch and let out a big sigh.

"I'm glad today is over with. I seriously doubt anyone has had a weirder or more stressful day than the one I've had today." He shook his head. "Certainly not Cody and Bailey. I can almost guarantee they are having the times of their lives as they've spent the day gushing over what someone did to someone else almost a hundred and fifty years ago. Their spring break is almost as lame as mine is..."

Zack finally made himself get up though. As tired as he was, he wanted nothing more at that moment than to get out of his suit and into something more comfortable. So, as quickly as he could, he changed out of his suit into a t-shirt and pair of basketball shorts, and was fully prepared to sit on the couch, watch some TV and maybe order a pizza later. But his moment of doing absolutely nothing came to a stop as he was interrupted by a knock at his door.

"What is it with people interrupting me just when I get comfortable? I knew I should have put out my 'Do Not Disturb' sign when I got home..."

He groaned as he stood up and made his way over to the door. And upon opening it, he was a little surprised to see Amanda standing there smiling at him.

"Hey Stranger! Long time, no see."

Zack smiled back. "Yeah, I guess it has, but it wasn't intentional. Come on in and take a load off."

She smiled at him again. "I wish I could, but I can only stay for a few minutes. Actually, I was just in your neighborhood running an errand for work and figured I'd stop by. But I do have plans in a little while."

Zack laughed. "Yeah? You got a hot date later or something?"

Amanda paused before nodding. "Yes, as a matter of fact, I do...with Jake."

"Good for you. I..." He paused, blinked and shook his head. "Wait a minute! Jake as in your ex-boyfriend, Jake?"

Amanda just nodded again. "That's the one..."

Zack was taken aback by her revelation. "Wow...Never saw that coming."

She laughed. "You and me both. It just kind of happened. I guess instead of trying to go through the walls I had built up, he found away around them. Before I knew it, I found myself caring about him again in that way..."

"Are you sure about this? I just don't want to see you get hurt again."

Amanda smiled again. "I appreciate that more than I can say, but for some reason, I'm not that worried about it this time."

Zack raised his eyebrows in surprise. "You aren't?"

Amanda shook her head. "No, not really. I mean, its been almost a year, and he never gave up on trying to get me back. I mean, that has to tell me that he really does care about me, right? If he didn't, he would have given up a long time ago..."

He paused as he couldn't help but notice how similar that sounded to his own situation with Maya. "Yeah, I guess so..."

She smiled again and laughed. "Plus, I have a feeling things will be a lot different this time around. All the things I wanted to do before that he wasn't too enthusiastic about? Well, lets just say I hope he finds a way to deal with them now..."

Zack laughed too. "That's definitely one benefit I guess. Just don't go overboard with it..."

"What about you? How are things between you and Maya nowadays?"

He just shrugged. "I wish I knew the answer to that question myself."

Amanda frowned. "Has she done something to cause your uncertainty? I thought she was pretty gung ho about getting you back like Jake was with me..."

He shook his head. "No, she hasn't done anything like that all. Like Jake, she's still sticking around and trying to get me back. In fact, we've been gradually hanging out even more and more lately. It almost seems just like old times again..." He paused. "Of course, there was that little incident on New Year's Eve..."

"What happened then?"

Briefly, Zack explained what had happened that night and the justification he was using to explain his actions. Amanda just gave him a knowing look and a smile. "And I bet you enjoyed every second of it!"

He couldn't keep eye contact with her and turned away. "Well..."

She just laughed again. "That's all I need to know...I know that feeling all too well!"

Zack decided to change the subject. "Oh, I do have some good news for you. You might have a friendly face in some of your classes again in a couple of years. Someone you know is going to go for their MBA too."

"You?"

Zack smiled. "Yeah, me. Moseby and London have both already signed off on the idea. Of course, Moseby wants me to get a minor in business administration and management before I do though. And naturally, to put a damper on things, he says there is this six credit course I have to take this summer..."

Amanda cringed. "I'm happy for you, but unfortunately, I know the exact class you're talking about. I had to take it last fall, and it completely sucked! It wasn't any fun at all!" She paused before grinning. "But other that that, congrats! How do you think Maya will handle you trying to continue your education?"

"Actually, she was the first person I told that I was thinking about it. She was totally supportive of it and told me to go for it." He paused. "How will Jake handle it if you and I are hanging out and having classes together again?"

She smiled. "He'll just have to get used to it and deal with it. Zack, you're my friend, and no one will tell me you can't be."

He smiled back at her. "I feel the same way about you."

She pulled him in for a hug. "Unfortunately, I do have to get going, or I'll be late. I just wanted to stop by and see how you were doing. Looks to me that things are going pretty well for you, Zack."

"Thanks. Have fun tonight, and don't be such a stranger."

"I won't. And good luck with your Maya situation. I'm sure you'll figure things out sooner than later..."

After Amanda had left, Zack returned back to his couch where he sat there thinking about his entire conversation with Amanda. Especially, he kept coming back to how her situation with Jake was eerily similar to his with Maya. And that's when he remembered the note she had left on his presentation earlier, and he smiled again. Suddenly, he had the urge to go see Maya and talk to her. But his stubbornness wouldn't let him just show up there. He wanted to have a cover so she wouldn't read too much into him showing up there out of the blue. Suddenly, he began grinning as an idea began forming in his mind.

__The Cabin in the Middle of Nowhere__

By the time Cody and Bailey had finally dug themselves out of the snow and made their way inside the cabin, they were soaked head to toe and shivering. The had brushed off as much of the snow as possible before entering, but by then, there was no way to keep their clothes dry. After closing the door, they turned on their flashlights to begin exploring what they hoped would be their safe port in the storm. Fortunately, there were signs that they were going to be in luck. Along one wall, there was a small fireplace with a pair of bunk beds against the other. Next to the bunk beds appeared to be a door to what they assumed was a closet. Along the far wall of the cabin, there appeared to be a tiny kitchenette with several small cupboards, a small refrigerator and small table with two chairs. Seeing how well it was furnished, Cody was a little uneasy as he worried about who the cabin belonged to.

"Did we just walk into the next Unabomber's cabin?"

Bailey shook her head and laughed. "No, I don't think so. Unless I've missed my guess, I'm pretty sure this is a crop cabin."

Cody just looked at her in confusion. "A what?"

"A crop cabin. When farmers have large tracts of land, they often build these out on the fringes of their property. This gives them a place to eat and sleep while they're planting or harvesting far away from the main house. That way, they don't have to waste time going to and from the main house every single day. It wouldn't surprise me if the big house was at least a mile away from here. I seriously doubt anyone's been out here since the harvest last fall..."

Cody looked at Bailey and smiled. "So, if people use this every so often, there is a chance we might find some things in here we can use!"

She smiled back at him. "You're right!"

"Alright, I think priority one is to see if we can get a fire going in the fireplace. Try to get some heat going in here to warm us up. You check the closet, and I'll check the refrigerator and cupboards."

And that's what they did. The closet Bailey checked wasn't as full of she would have hoped, but she did manage to find a couple of old quilts inside of it. She would have liked to have found more, but she was grateful for what she did find. Fortunately for them, Cody had quite a bit more luck. The cupboards still had some canned goods in them if they should need them. But the real goldmine he found was a couple of old duralogs and a book of matches. He wasn't sure if any of them would still work, but they at least had a chance now.

"Bails, I think I've got something!"

She ran over to him immediately, and when she saw what he had found, she smiled again. "Cody! This is perfect! We just need to find some kindling to help get the logs burning..."

"Did you find anything we can use to do that?"

"No, just a couple of quilts, but I don't think we should think about burning them. But I do know of something we have that will work perfectly..."

"What?"

"That little notebook you've been carrying around with you all week."

Cody gasped. "My journal I've used to document our trip? But Bails..."

Bailey just gave him a look. "Sweetie, if we don't survive, that journal will be completely useless..."

He sighed and nodded. "You're right. I'm sorry. I don't know what I was thinking..."

"Its okay. With the situation we've found ourselves in, its natural for us to freak out a little."

"Right again, and that's why we need to stay calm and collected. Lets get this fire going ASAP. I can still hear my teeth chattering even though we've been inside for almost fifteen minutes now."

"I'm right behind you."

Another fifteen minutes later, with the aid of Cody's journal, the first log was beginning to burn and give off heat. Both of them just stood in front of the small but growing fire trying to claim its warmth for themselves. But no matter, both were still shivering as their teeth continued to chatter.

"Cody, I don't think this is going to work. We're both soaked from head to toe. By the time it gets hot enough, we both might already have hypothermia..."

He could only nod. "You're right. We have to find a way to not only get warmer but drier as well. All of our clothes are soaked. We could try to head back to the car for dry ones, but the walk to the car and back would be another hour in the elements in wet clothes and would only speed up hypothermia. So, I'd suggest we not go that route..."

"What can we do then, Cody?"

Cody smiled. "I have an idea. You remember that rerun of _The Big Bang_ Theory we watched last week?"

Bailey just looked at him like he was crazy. "You want to talk about a TV show now of all times?"

He kept smiling. "Remember it was the one where they were up at the North Pole, and they lost heat one night up there?"

"Of course I remember it. They..." Bailey paused as she suddenly thought she knew where Cody was going with this. "Are you saying what I think you're saying?"

__Boston__

As quickly as he could, Zack filled a small bag with a change of clothes, put on his sneakers, and was out the door. He grumbled to himself as he realized he had missed the train he needed and waited impatiently for the next one to arrive. Soon enough though, he was on his way over towards BU's campus. Checking his watch, he calmed himself down as he realized that he didn't have to rush as Maya wasn't supposed to finish her shift working the fit & rec center front desk until nine o'clock that night. Exiting the station closest to the center, he crossed the street and made it over to the fit&rec center. But when he got to the front door, what he saw through the glass stopped him dead in his tracks.

Maya was sitting at the desk, but there was some muscle bound guy in shorts and a tank top leaning against the desk smiling at her. And it was obvious to Zack was he was trying to do – flirt with Maya. And before he realized it, Zack found himself scowling with a bitter taste in his mouth. He had the urge to run right in there and tell that guy to stop flirting with his...his...well, he didn't know how to finish that thought. But he did know he didn't like the sight in front of him at all. Quickly deciding he needed to break up whatever was going on, he pushed the door open and walked inside.

Hearing the door open, Maya looked over and a smile broke out on her face when she saw him walk in. "Zack! This is a pleasant surprise. What are you doing here?"

Zack walked over to the desk, and smiled back. "Well, I'm a BU student and as they have full use of this place, I thought I'd come over here and finally use it."

She just looked at him and shook her head. "You do realize that everything we have here, you have the same things over at the Tipton except they are probably much, much nicer."

He just kept smiling. "That may be true about some things, but there isn't an indoor basketball court there. After the day I've had, I felt like shooting some hoops and letting off some steam."

Maya was about to say something when they both heard someone clear their throat. She sighed. "Zack, this is Bruno. He's works in the gym here as a personal trainer. Bruno, this is my friend, Zack." She turned her attention back to Zack. "So, what happened to you today that necessitates you needing to let off some steam?"

Realizing he was being ignored, Bruno shook his head and walked off grumbling. Sighing in relief, Maya mouthed a 'Thank you' to Zack.

He leaned in and whispered. "For what?"

"For getting rid of him. Since I've been having to work the front desk this week, he's seen it as an opportunity to come over and flirt with me every chance he gets. I'm afraid say anything to him or tell him to stop because his aunt is my boss. So, I've just been grinning and bearing it hoping he will finally give up..."

Zack frowned. "Why didn't you tell me about this earlier in the week? I would have been here before now to help you get rid of him. You shouldn't have to put up with that."

Maya smiled at him. "Thanks, I really appreciate that. You never answered though. What made your day so rough?"

He smiled back at her. "I never said it was rough. I just had a big day that I needed to burn off some energy afterwards."

"But what..." She paused and her eyes went wide. "Wait a minute! Today was your meeting with London, wasn't it?"

He just nodded.

"And?"

He just smiled.

Maya jumped up and ran from around the desk to hug him. "Congratulations, Zack! I'm so happy for you!"

"Well, nothing is definite yet. I still have to put in the work, take and pass the GMAT and get accepted to graduate school. But if I do all of that, London is totally on board."

She smiled again. "All things I know will happen. This is a cause for a celebration! I say we head out and celebrate right now!"

He grinned. "I think you leaving your post early will get you in more trouble than telling off your boss's nephew..."

Maya's eyes went wide. "Good point..." She laughed. "Okay, when I get off from work, we'll go celebrate then..."

"I think I can go along with that. That'll give me time to go shoot some hoops. You know...get me ready for March Madness coming up this week."

She headed behind the desk again to get him something. "Just take a shower when you're done. And here's a towel." She shook her head and sighed. "Next time I see your brother, remind me to give him my sympathy for having to do this for three years."

Zack laughed. "I wouldn't. Deep down, I think he really loved that job."

"The same job he had to take because of you?"

He rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah. That was almost five years ago. I've gotten much better!"

She just smiled at him. "I know you have. Go on and shoot your hoops. I get off in an hour."

"I'll be back by then." Zack headed off to the locker room to put his bag into a locker. But as he did, he felt a thousand times better than he did when he first got to the fit&rec center. He paused though to consider that. Why was he so happy that Maya hadn't been flirting with that muscle bound oaf and was glad that he had gotten mad and left? He just shook his head. He would worry about that later.

__The Cabin__

The fire in the fireplace was now burning a lot brighter and more importantly, much more warmer. On each side of the fireplace, they had placed the two small chairs from the kitchenette and draped over both chairs were all of the clothes Cody and Bailey had been wearing. And by all of their clothes, everything single article of clothing they had been wearing were on the chairs so they could begin to dry out by the fire. Between the chairs, Cody and Bailey were huddled together wrapped up together in the two quilts like a giant cocoon.

Cody had to laugh. "Well, Boo Boo...I think its safe to say we've just lost the last modicums of modesty we had with each other..."

Bailey laughed too. "I would say you're right. Of course, you did tell me you weren't going to peek. Trying to tell me you went back on your word, Cody Bear?"

He just smiled at her. "Well, I tried to be good, but I couldn't resist the urge to take one tiny little peek. After all, I am a red blooded heterosexual male, and you're gorgeous!"

Bailey slapped his shoulder as best as she could as she laughed again. "Cody!"

Cody was laughing too, glad they had something to bring some levity to their situation So, he decided to try to keep it going. "Oh come on, Sweetie. Shouldn't we both be worried if I hadn't? And are you telling me you didn't steal a glimpse or two yourself?"

She couldn't help but blush. "Well, maybe a couple of quick ones. I guess I just couldn't help myself either..." She paused. "Which is kind of strange considering the situation we're in right now. For a few moments, I completely forgot all about it..."

"Same here. But Bails, we've done everything we can to give ourselves a fighting chance of survival. Right now, its out of our hands. There's nothing more we can do."

"You're right. And I do have to admit, I am feeling much, much warmer now. I guess two naked people cuddled together sharing body heat actually does work and isn't just some old wives' tale."

He smiled at her again. "I guess we learned biology as well as history on our spring break."

She smiled back at him before cuddling up closer to him. "And I have to say – all things considered, this is actually very romantic."

Cody just gave her a look. "Romantic?"

"Yeah - us cuddled up together in front of a roaring fire like this. If not for the circumstances that lead us here, I couldn't imagine anything better."

Cody stopped to think. "Yeah, I guess it is. And you want to hear the really funny thing?"

Bailey turned to look at him. "Yeah, I do."

"I know there is a decent chance we might not make it until tomorrow. And I know there is a chance I'll never see my family and friends ever again. The thought of that should cause me to be freaking out right now, but I'm not. For some reason, I can deal with all of it because you're here with me."

Bailey smiled at him again. "I know exactly what you mean. I should be scared to death too, but I'm really not. Its actually comforting knowing that no matter what happens to us, we're going through it together. No matter what happens, its going to happen to both of us..."

Cody just leaned in and kissed her. "Yeah, it will." He paused as he realized these might be the last moments he would ever get to share with her. So, he wanted to tell her so many things just in case. Unfortunately, he was having trouble trying to figure out how to say what it was he wanted to say at that moment. "And Bails, if this is our last night on earth, I...I..." He stopped as he couldn't get it out.

"What is it, Cody?"

He was getting a little choked up as he felt his emotions beginning to get the best of him. "There's just so much I want to say to you and to tell you. Most importantly, I just want you to know how much I love you."

She smiled. "I know, Cody. And I want you to know how much I love you too."

"And I want to thank you. To thank you for coming into my life. To thank you for loving me. And to thank you for giving me the best years of my life. If I don't make it through the night, I'll never get to be a doctor, but being with you these past few years has made my life completely worth living."

Bailey leaned in and kissed him again. "I couldn't have said that better myself..." Now it was Bailey's turn to pause as she debated something in her mind.

But Cody immediately picked up on it. "Everything okay, Bailey?"

"Yeah, I was just thinking about something. Cody, you're right - this might be our last ever night together."

"I'm trying not to think about it like that though..."

"I'm not either, but..."She paused again before decided to just blurt it out. "Cody, there has been something on my mind lately, but I figured it would happen when the time was right for you and me. But if this going to be it for us, I want to spend my last night on earth making love with you..."

Cody looked at her in surprise. "Bails..." He just saw her looking back at him with a look of certainty on her face. "Are you sure about that?"

Bailey nodded. "Yeah, I am. Cody, we love each other and plan to spend the rest of our lives together. Whether that be eight hours or eighty years, I don't ever want to go to my grave regretting anything. Look...I know this is something that ordinarily we would sit down and discuss thoroughly with each other. And I know we would both agree that we would know when the time was right for us. But time is not something we may have the luxury of having for much longer..."

He just looked at her again as he thought about what she had said. Ultimately, he could just nod his agreement. "You're right, Sweetie. I've thought about it too, but I've never pushed the issue before because of how much I love and respect you..."

She smiled at him. "I know you do. And I also know you'd never force me to do anything I wouldn't want to do. Cody, this is something I do want to do though. If this is our last night, I say we go out with a bang..."

Cody couldn't help but laugh. "Interesting choice of words you just used..."

Bailey laughed too realizing her double entendre. "Yeah, I just realized that myself..."

"But the point is is that you are right. If this is going to be our last night together, I want to spend it showing you just how beautiful I think you are and how much I love you..."

"Me too."

He leaned in and kissed her with more passion. "And I do love you...so much. I'm ready to show you just how much."

"I love you too. Cody, for once in our lives, lets not over think this. Lets just go with what we both want. I'm ready to show you how much I love you too. Make love to me, Cody...if this is to be our final night on earth, I want to spend it like this. This is the right time for us..."

Cody just nodded again before leaning in and kissing Bailey again. And as their kiss intensified, they pulled the quilt over their heads as the fire continued roaring in front of them.

__To be Continued...__

____**AN: Okay, I see everyone wasn't rooting hard enough for UK on Sunday, and you let them get beat by Vandy...VANDY! Okay, it was just the SEC Tourney, but I expect much better for the upcoming NCAA Tourney. Anyways, as I think Thursday and Friday should be a national holiday, I've gone ahead and loaded up this episode as well as the remaining three of Season 2. So, you don't have to worry if March Madness will get in the way of me posting them.**


	23. Blizzard, Part 3

_Episode 23_

__"Blizzard, Part 3"__

__I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did.__

__Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them.__

__Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves.__

__And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so...__

__The Cabin__

The next morning, the fire was still burning, but it was starting to get weaker and weaker. Outside, there were birds chirping and singing their songs for anyone to hear - if anyone was around to here them. And best of all, the sun was out and shining and beginning to melt the snow. In particular, as the sun continued to rise, its rays began streaming through the cabin windows and along the the interior of the cabin. As the sun rose even higher in the morning sky, rays of light slowly moved over two motionless bodies lying on the cabin floor. Eventually, the sunlight had continued on its path until it was shining directly into Cody's face. He flinched, and instinctively put his hand up to block it out. Still asleep, he groaned and pulled Bailey closer to him.

"Bails, would you do me a favor and close the blinds..."

She just mumbled still asleep yourself. "Close them yourself..."

After a few seconds of both of them just lying there, both shot straight up and looked at each other with their eyes wide and mouths open.

"Bails! You're alive!"

"So are you, Cody!"

Both reached for the other and enjoyed a joyous and jubilant embrace. Cody and Bailey were so happy that both were still alive that neither was in any hurry to let go of the other.

"We did it, Sweetie! We took mother nature's best shot again and survived again!" Cody just shook his head and smiled. "The last thing I remember was holding you in my arms and kissing your shoulders. I'm guessing we fell asleep sometime soon after..."

Bailey pulled back and smiled at him. "Yeah, I guess we did. But the most important thing is we woke up again this morning and not as blocks of ice. We live to fight another day."

He grinned back. "I don't think us becoming blocks of ice was going to happen. As I recall, things got pretty hot in here last night..." He just kept grinning at her until a thought crossed his mind that made his begin to panic and his eyes went wide. "Oh no!"

She was concerned. "What is it, Sweetie? What's wrong?"

Cody swallowed. "Bailey...last night...we didn't use...and you're not on..."

Bailey couldn't help herself and began laughing. "Oh, that...We have nothing to worry about, Honey. I'm on birth control, and I have been for a couple of months now..."

He looked at her with surprise all over his face. "You are?"

"Yeah, the doctor put me on it when I got my physical. She said it would help regulate me and that she highly encouraged every female student to go on it as a precaution because you never knew what could happen." She smiled. "I guess she was right about that, huh? Anyways, I was going to tell you about it after my physical, but in your excitement over finally breaking six feet, I guess I forgot it at the time."

Cody smiled back at her. "Well, that's a load off of my mind." He paused. "Not that I don't look forward to the day you first tell me you're pregnant, but I kind of figured it wouldn't come until after we were married and done with school."

She just smiled again. "I know, Sweetie. I figured the same thing."

He teased her. "But from now on, no more keeping surprises like that from me. I almost began hyperventilating there!"

She laughed. "But its fun to see you do that..." She kissed his cheek. "But in all seriousness, it was getting the birth control shot that caused me to think that maybe we were ready for this step."

Cody pulled her closer to him. "So...now that we have survived, any regrets about last night?"

Bailey paused to think. "Just one..."

His expression fell. "You do regret something?"

She grinned again. "Yeah - the fact that we waited so long to do that. Cody, last night went from one of the scariest nights of my life to the best one. It was completely amazing, and I've never felt more loved before in my life. I'll never regret for a second us doing what we did. I've had dreams of what our first time would be like, but last night was blew those completely out of the water. It was soooo much better than I ever imagined."

That caused him to grin. "Same here. But as for doing it before, I don't know if we would have been ready for it. The first time around, despite what we might have thought, I don't think we would have been mature enough to handle it. But last night was perfect to me." He paused and laughed. "Well worth the almost twenty year wait."

"You're right, Sweetie. I think now was the right time. And it was perfect." She leaned in and kissed him again. "And if us both waiting twenty years was the price to make sure our first times were perfect, then it was definitely worth the long wait." She grinned. "But after waiting almost twenty years, I have a feeling we're going to make up for lost time."

Cody leaned in and kissed her. "I hope so. I love you so much, Bails."

"I love you too, Cody Bear."

Cody sighed. "And as much as I would love to stay like this here with you for a long, long time, we should probably get dressed and see what the situation is like outside."

Bailey nodded. "You're probably right." Both stood up to go for their now hopefully dried clothes. But as Bailey was gathering her things, she heard a whistle. Turning, she saw Cody grinning and winking at her. She just shook her head and smiled. Cody might be a little crazy, but there was no way she would ever want him to change.

After they got dressed, they gathered up everything they had brought with them and tried to put everything in the cabin back where they had found it. And figuring it was the right thing to do, they left a note on the kitchenette table explaining how and why they had borrowed the cabin for the night along with some money to cover the items they used. Fortunately, the walk back to the car was much easier with the sun shining and no snow falling. And when they got back to their car, Cody and Bailey were both grateful that it wasn't completely buried in snow. Their luck continued to grow as they were able to open the trunk and get both the combination brushes/scrapers that had in there. Thirty minutes later, they had the cur dug out and cleared off, and when Cody tried to start it, both sighed in relief when the engine turned over and it started.

"So, what do we do now? The tires will probably still not be able to get an traction."

But just as Bailey had said that, another yet another fortunate break came their way. A state police car appeared on the horizon coming towards them, and they both jumped up and down to flagged him down. The state trooper pulled in behind them, and got out of his car.

"Is everything okay here? Are you in trouble or something?"

Cody sighed in relief. "Yes, Sir, we are in some trouble. We're stuck in the snow here, and all our tires will do is spin. And we can't get a cell phone signal so we can call for a tow truck..."

The officer just laughed. "Good luck getting one of those today after that freak snowstorm last night."

Cody and Bailey just looked at each other and sighed figuring their car was going to be stuck for a whole lot longer. The officer continued though. "But if you're just spinning tires, I might have a solution." He went to his trunk and got out a bag of kitty litter.

Bailey just looked at him. "Kitty litter?"

"Yeah, it gives the tires something to grip onto and get some traction."

Cody and Bailey both groaned and rolled their eyes. "Why didn't we think of doing something like that? The kitty litter would increase the coefficient of friction. I feel so stupid right now..."

But thirty more minutes later, the car was unstuck and they were back on the road again. Turns out that the juncture with the interstate was only about fifteen more miles down the road. As they stopped to refuel and buy hot beverages and breakfast, they paused before they pulled out to continue on with their trip. Cody turned to Bailey and grinned.

"You know...this was one spring break where I didn't mind being merged with someone else."

She laughed. "That's funny you would say that. I told Gertie that either of getting merged with someone wasn't going to happen. Shows what we know, huh? But I'm glad it happened though. I definitely learned something from our little detour."

"What's that?"

She grinned at him. "Even if the most dire of situations, something beautiful can come from them. The twister, me being possessed and now a blizzard. Cody, I have no fear of anything else being thrown at us from now on. We'll handle it. Now, I know we'll have to adjust our itinerary some, but I say at our next two stops, we try to upgrade our reservations to cabins with fireplaces..." She paused. "Electric heat and hot running water would be nice too."

He grinned back at her. "I'd be down with that. I could use a long hot bath right now. And you aren't the only one who learned a valuable lesson from this. I learned something too."

"And what is that?"

"Bails, storms turn out to be very good things for us. First, the international dateline storm, then the tornado, then the hurricane, and now this. I know it seem like bad weather follows us around, but I can't complain with the results. I know you have your heart set on an outdoor wedding someday, but with the way they bring us good luck, I wouldn't mind a bit if it stormed on our wedding day."

Bailey laughed. "After all of this, I wouldn't either..."

"And you want to hear something funny?"

"What?"

Cody grinned. "You know what the state motto of Virginia is?"

She paused to think. "Sic semper tyrannis. Its Latin for 'thus always to tyrants'. It was what John Wilkes Booth shouted after he assassinated President Lincoln. Why?"

He paused. "I think I meant their tourism slogan instead of motto."

"Oh...Its Virginia is for..." She paused and began laughing. "Its Virginia is for Lovers..."

He grabbed her hand and smiled. "It certainly is..."

__Boston__

On Sunday, Cody and Bailey pulled into the parking garage of the Tipton Hotel about eleven o'clock that evening bringing an end to the most memorable trip of their lives. That Sunday had been a long one as they had left Manasses, Virginia at eight o'clock that morning. And with stops in Philadelphia and New Haven on the way, it took them almost fourteen hours to get back to Boston. In Philadelphia, they wanted to stop and see Independence Hall and a few other places of historical interest. And in New Haven, they got to the store they rented their camping gear from and returned it five minutes before they closed. And while they were close by to their dorm rooms, they dropped off their dirty clothes, refilled their bags with clean ones and picked up their laptops and books. Of course, after such a long day of driving, they did stop between New Haven and Boston to grab some dinner at a place they had found on one of their trips back.

Once they had put the car in park, Cody turned to Bailey.

"You know, we might not want to tell people about our little...detour."

She frowned. "Why not? Its an interesting story to tell..."

He smiled at her. "Because if we do, it might lead to them asking questions that the answers to are none of their business..."

Bailey stopped to consider that before nodding. "You're right. What happened should stay between us." She grinned at him. "But it will be kind of hard to keep the best night of my life to myself. It was just so wonderful..."

"Hard for you? I had the urge to run out into the snow right then and there and shout it for all the woodland creatures to hear!"

She laughed. "Kind of like after the first time we kissed, huh?"

"Exactly!"

She paused and sighed. "Unfortunately, from now on, it won't be just the two of us any longer like it was last week. Here in Boston, we'll have Zack in the next room. And back at school, we'll have Gertie and Tapeworm."

Cody nodded. "I know..." He smiled. "But, Zack will be gone at work and class during the days, and Gertie and Tapeworm will have their own classes they will have to go to when we don't. It won't be as much time alone as we would like, but we'll still have some time to ourselves. And I fully plan on taking advantage of them every chance we get!"

Bailey smiled too. "I guess we'll have to treasure those times we do have and make them count."

He leaned in and kissed her. "I know we will. So, you ready to go from the excitement of the last week to a week of studying and writing papers?"

"Yeah, I am. Because in both places, I get to be with you." She yawned. "But right now, what I want to do with you is just go to bed and sleep. Cody Bear, I'm exhausted."

He yawned too. "Same here. Its been a long day, and all we've done is basically just drive. I never knew just sitting down for so long could be so tiring..."

Grabbing their bags, their backpacks and their laptop bags, they headed into the hotel and made their way up to the 23rd floor. And when they opened the door to Zack and Cody's suite, they saw a sight that caused them both to just shake their heads. Zack was sprawled out on the couch snoring and slobbering away.

Bailey turned to Cody. "Have I mentioned yet how grateful I am that we won't have that to come home to when we're older?

Cody let out a small laugh. "Tell me about it."

They took their things and dropped them off in Cody's room before Cody came back out into the suite. He knelt down next to Zack to wake him up, but remembering that last Christmas on the boat, he scooted back some. And then he began beeping to emulate an alarm clock. Immediately, Zack reached out to swat at it, but as Cody has scooted back, he missed, and his momentum caused him to fall off the couch and wake up. Groggily, he picked himself up off the floor and stared at Cody.

"Oh, its just you. You're back." Zack yawned. "What time is it?"

"Its after eleven. I figured you'd rather sleep in your bed than on the couch."

Zack just nodded and stood up. Yawning again, he spoke to his brother. "So, did you guys have fun on the most boring trip imaginable?"

Cody just shook his head and grinned. Before he could answer, Bailey came out of the bedroom and joined him. "Sweetie, Zack was just asking if we had fun on our trip."

Bailey just smiled. "Zack, Cody and I had the time of our lives. I couldn't imagine a better trip."

Zack shook his head and rolled his eyes. "You would..." He paused as he noticed something. "There's something definitely different about you two though..."

Cody had no idea how to respond that, but Bailey was quick on her feet. "Well, we did spent a lot of time outside, so we both did get some sun."

Zack nodded. "That's it. About time too. You two spend so much time inside studying, I was beginning to think you two were albinos..." He yawned once again. "I'm going to bed..." And with that, he stumbled off into his room and closed the door behind him.

Bailey and Cody just looked at each other smiling and trying to hold back their laughter.

_The Next Morning_

About 7:30 on Monday morning, Zack came out of his room dressed and ready for work. But he was a little surprised to find Cody already awake standing over the stove fixing breakfast. Not being one to ever overlook a free meal, Zack sat down at their table.

"Not that I'm complaining, but what are you doing up so early...?"

Cody turned to look at his brother. "I'm fixing breakfast. What does it look like I'm doing?"

"You know what I mean. You're on spring break for another week. If it was me, I'd still be in bed right now asleep..."

"Despite any preconceived notions you may have, Bailey and I actually have a lot of work to get done this week before school starts back next week. We have papers to work on and complete by the end of tomorrow before we switch over to studying for our Organic Chem II exam we have a week from today. So, we'll be plenty busy..."

Zack smirked at him. "Only two days to get a paper done? That doesn't sound like you at all. It usually takes you double that to do a paper to your satisfaction..."

Cody just smirked back at him. "Well, for your information, we already have all of our research done and finished outlines for them. All we have left to do is actually do the writing of the papers. And, two days is amount of time I always allocate to myself to actually write a paper. Just because you are the master of doing things at the last minute doesn't mean Bailey and I are."

Zack just grinned. "Worked for me so far..."

"Yeah...because who knows how many times in the past you've stolen my papers. At least once that I know of..."

"Anyways, I did find out this week that London is going to support my endeavors to get an MBA."

"Congratulations, Zack. Looks like Bailey and I won't be the only who will have to be working hard before a standardized test. To get into grad school, you'll have to sign up and study hard for the GMAT..."

"Yeah. Moseby said I should take it as soon as I could."

"He's right. Bailey and I are planning to take the MCAT next January. That gives us time to take the final class that will be covered on it next semester in addition to giving us all summer to study. Plus, it lets us get all of our applications out by the end of our junior years. Hopefully, we'll have the whole medical school application process done and know where we will be attending before our senior years begin."

Zack sighed. "Well, I'll be studying all summer too. Moseby also says I should get a minor in business administration and management. And to get that, there is this class this summer he says I have to take..." Zack paused as he thought of something. "Wait a minute! Why do I have to take summer school for a major and a minor when you two never will with double majors? How is that fair?"

Cody smiled. "That's an easy one. We took our AP classes in high school seriously and got college credit for several of them. Beyond that, we take six classes a semester while you only take about four. Zack, by the end of our junior years, we'll have every biology requirement done except for our year long senior essay. And we'll have everything in EP&E done except for an advanced seminar and our semester long senior essay. The way we figure it, during our last two semesters, we'll only have to take two real classes and two more that we should get easy A's in..."

Zack shook his head. "Unbelievable! This is complete and utter bull..."

Cody cut him off. "No, its not. We had a plan going in, and we've followed it to a 'T'..." He smirked again. "Besides... I'm willing to bet the last semester of your senior year won't be that tough either. I bet you won't take more than fifteen credits..."

Zack extended his hand. "Oh yeah? Wanna bet?"

Cody extended his hand. "Definitely. Our normal betting terms, Randolph?"

"You know it, Mortimer!" He shook his brother's hand to seal the bet.

"I look forward to winning yet again..."

"Doubtful. This will be the easiest money I'll ever make."

Cody turned back to tend to the stove while Zack sat there and allowed his mind to wander to another topic. " Hey, Codester, can I ask you something about another topic completely different?"

"Yeah, sure."

"When you and Bailey were temporarily broken up, did you ever get jealous when you saw her talking to other guys even if it was completely innocent?"

Cody turned to look at his brother with a questioning look on his face. "Zack, what are you talking about?"

He sighed. "I went to the fit&rec center last Wednesday night to tell Maya the good news about my meeting with London, and I saw some muscle bound oaf trying to flirt with her. And she was just smiling and seemed to be enjoying it. I don't know why, but I found myself getting really upset at that, and my heart felt like it was in my throat. Turns out it was her boss's nephew, and she wanted to tell him to stop it but was afraid of repercussions. I was so mad that he was doing that that I went back there on Thursday and Friday to keep her company so he wouldn't bother her again. But since then, it keeps dawning on me how jealous I got when I first saw that."

Cody just began laughing which caused Zack to get a little miffed. "What's so funny?"

"Zack, you might have been jealous, but it sounds like your overriding emotion was fear..."

Zack frowned. "Fear? What was I afraid of?"

Cody smiled. "You were afraid of losing her. It dawned on you that someone could take her away from you, and you didn't like the thought of that one bit."

"What are you talking about, Cody?"

"Zack, when I saw Bailey talking to other guys on the boat, I admit it bothered me. Little did I know at the time that she was doing it just to get under my skin. But I was still so angry then that I wouldn't let myself consciously acknowledge that I was jealous. Once I got over my stupidity though and admitted how much I still loved her, things changed. In Kettlecorn, when Moose was there, I wasn't jealous. I was petrified. I was afraid she would pick him over me. I was afraid he was going to take her away from me. I was afraid that I had screwed up too bad and lost her forever."

"But you didn't, and hasn't he proven to be a complete tool?"

"Well, he's shown what his true colors are now, but at the time, he hadn't. But when Bailey told me she had never stopped loving me, all of my fears were gone. And I've vowed never to do anything to risk losing her again. I won't because I need her in my life. She's essential to me as the air I breathe. I think its the same for you. You and Maya have become real close again. You may say your just friends, but your reaction to what you saw proves otherwise."

"I don't know about all of that..."

"Think about it, Zack. Have you ever had that feeling you said you experienced when you saw London or Max or even Amanda talking to another guy? You even pretended to be her boyfriend temporarily, and you had no problem helping make her ex boyfriend jealous. But one time you see another guy talking to Maya, and you flip out..."

Zack sighed. "There's more. Amanda told me she's dating her ex again. It didn't bother me in the least. I was actually happy for her..."

Cody smiled. "So, what does it tell you that that didn't, but with Maya, you seeing a situation wrong had you ready to fight?"

"I...I..." Zack wasn't ready to finish that sentence. So, he looked down at his watch and jumped up. "If I don't leave right now, I'm going to be late for work!" And with that, Zack practically ran out the suite. Cody just shook his head and smiled.

_New Haven_

By Saturday Morning, Cody and Bailey had finished their papers and gotten three full and extensive days of studying in for their Organic Chem II test. By then, they thought the drive back to school that morning would serve as a much needed break from their studying. Plus, it would give them another day and a half back on campus to study without the distractions of Boston around them.

That morning, they said goodbye to Carey and promised they would be back in Boston in early May. Before they left, they were looking for Zack to say goodbye to him, but after the talk he and Cody had had on Monday morning, he had been distant and had seemingly avoided them the rest of that week. But Cody thought that was a good thing as it meant Zack was finally asking himself some hard questions and hopefully getting answers. He hoped this was the beginning of Zack breaking through his stubbornness.

Two and a half hours later, they were back on campus. And they figured since they didn't have as much with them, they would just park the car and ride the shuttle back to the dorm. When they got back up to Bailey and Gertie's room, they found Gertie and Tapeworm already back too and lounging on the futon watching TV.

Bailey smiled. "Well, no obvious casts, so I'm taking it your ski trip was a successful one..."

Gertie laughed. "A few close calls, but we made it through unscathed. Actually, I was more worried about escaping meeting his family alive than the skiing."

Tapeworm rolled his eyes. "Oh please. Don't listen to her. My parents loved her and were sad to see her go. At one point or another, my Mom, my Dad and even my sister told me how much they liked Gertie and for me not to screw it up..."

Cody nodded. "My family tells me the exact same thing." He teased Bailey. "I'm beginning to think they may actually be right."

"How was your trip? Did you two learn anything you didn't already know?"

Bailey looked at Cody and nodded. "Yeah, we had a wonderful time. It was...very educational."

Tapeworm laughed. "Well, if you have pictures of Cody roughing it, I'd pay to see those. I'll double it if you have pictures of him being chased by an animal..."

Cody rolled his eyes. "Its not like we were in the middle of nowhere. There were guest service areas on site that had restaurants and showers we could use. We we're camping, but it wasn't that bad..."

"Still..."

Bailey just shook her head. "We do have some pictures from Gettysburg, Antietam, Appomattox and Bull Run." She smiled. "And a few of Cody trying to put the tent up. Unfortunately, we need to get back to studying for our test on Monday, so if we can get a rain check on those..."

Gertie nodded. "Understood. One more thing we should mention before you two head out. The housing lottery for rising juniors is coming up in a few weeks. Since the seniors will take all the spots in the swing dorm, we were thinking if you two didn't mind, we'd just use our squatters' rights this year and hang on to the rooms we have now."

"Works for me." She turned to Cody. "Okay with you too?"

He nodded. "Yeah, sounds good." He turned to Tapeworm. "But I'm not buying you dinner again this year..."

Tapeworm laughed. "Awww..."

"Well, guys, spring break is over. We have five more weeks of fun left before its time to buckle down again." Cody sighed. "And I for one will be so happy to be done with Organic Chemistry classes and their sadistic professors..."

Bailey sighed too. "You and me both." She grabbed her backpack. "Alright, Sweetie...Time to get back to the grind. Off to the library we go."

Cody nodded and grabbed his backpack. "See you guys later..."

After Cody and Bailey left the room, Tapeworm and Gertie looked at each other.

"Was I the only one who noticed that something is different about those two?"

She nodded. "I got that same impression, but I have no idea what it could be..."

He shrugged. "Oh well..." He grinned. "I have more alone time with you, so I'm not too worried about it..."

Gertie giggled as he leaned in to kiss her.

_Boston_

Zack was actually relieved when Cody and Bailey had left to head back to school. Its not that he didn't like having them around, but for a week, every time he saw his brother, he couldn't get what Cody had said out of his mind. Was he actually right about the way that he viewed Maya now? Zack shook his head. He and Maya were just friends now, and that was okay.

"Okay, sure I hated it when I thought the guy was flirting with her, but that doesn't mean what Cody thinks it means...Does it? And yeah, I did enjoy kissing her over New Year's, but who wouldn't?" He shook his head. "Calm down Zack...Cody may be smart, but he's not right about everything..."

He groaned and pulled a pillow over his face.

"Except that I know he is 100% right about this...Face it, Zack. You're still in love with Maya..."

_To be Continued..._

__**AN: Hope everyone is enjoying March Madness. After a rather mundane Thursday, things got really crazy yesterday. Lets hope UK has its own luck against a bunch of Cyclones today.**


	24. A Total Pain in the

_Episode 24_

__"A Total Pain in the..."__

__I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did.__

__Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them.__

__Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves.__

__And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so...__

__New Haven__

In contrast to the weeks between Valentine's Day and spring break, the last five weeks of the spring 2013 semesters seemed to fly by at Yale. But that doesn't mean everyone had laid back and carefree weeks. Rather, they were still filled with more exams, papers and projects. And their last week of the semester before reading week was to begin turned out to be an insanely busy one for Cody and Bailey. In addition to having the third of their three exams in Organic Chem II on that Monday, they had to take their final exam in their Spanish for Medical Professionals class on Friday. And if that wasn't enough, they also had to turn in their final projects due in their Science Fiction and New Ideas of Human Nature seminar on Wednesday and their final papers in their EP&E class on Thursday. Thankfully, they had enough foresight to plan and spread their work around far enough ahead so that both their final projects/papers had been completed by the Thursday of the week before. That gave them Friday, Saturday and Sunday to study for their chem test and the rest of the week to study for Spanish. But after all the energy they had spent over the past several weeks, they were close to hitting the proverbial wall on the last day of classes. By the time they got back to their dorm on that Friday afternoon, Cody and Bailey both sunk down into the futon in his room, both physically exhausted.

"Give me a few minutes to rest before we go grab some lunch..."

Bailey sighed. "Take your time. My body isn't minding taking a breather at all. In fact, it would kill for one of your back rubs right now..."

Cody laughed. "I doubt I have the energy to lift my arms right now..." He closed his eyes and exhaled. "Bails, is it just me or has this semester abolutely flown by?"

She nodded. "I know. I feel like I blinked and it was over. I know a lot has happened in the past several months, but it seems like it was just yesterday that we returned back from Christmas break..."

Cody let out a little sigh. "Well, its not over just yet. Our reward for this past week of hell is to begin studying again for our finals that start next Tuesday..."

"At least we our officially done with four of our classes now and only have two finals to take..."

"Very true. Thursday morning and Sunday afternoon. And then we don't have to be moved out until Wednesday at noon. So, we have that going for us which is nice..."

Bailey sighed. "Sweetie, would you mind if we took tonight off and did something that didn't require any thought whatsoever?"

"Mind? I'd be all for it! How about dinner and a movie tonight? Surely we can find some sappy romantic comedy that won't require us to think at all..."

She just looked at him. "Oh please...You know we'd still end up dissecting like we always do..."

Cody grinned. "Not if we find other ways to keep ourselves busy afterwards..."

She grinned at him. "Very true...I love the way you think, Sweetie."

"The feeling is mutual. Now, how about we get up, go grab some lunch and then come back here for a long afternoon nap? If we're both thinking the same thing for later, we're going to need one..."

"Sounds perfect to me. Help me up?"

Cody stood up and extended his hand to help Bailey up. As he did though, he winced as he felt a sharp pain shoot through his side. "Owww..."

"Cody, I know you love to tease me, but save it for later when I have the energy to tease you back..."

He was still wincing though. "I'm not teasing you. I just felt this sharp pain in my side. It felt like someone just kicked me in the kidney..."

Bailey was concerned now. "Are you alright, Cody?"

He took a deep breath, and eventually, the pain began to subside. "Yeah, much better now. I'm sure it was probably nothing..."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. Probably pulled a muscle from carrying around a heavy backpack for the past week. Either that or my stomach was complaining about my horrible eating habits for the past few weeks. With us burning the midnight oil and working so much, I've been eating more fast food than I do usually just to save time. That's why I think we should head on down to the dining room. Maybe if I give my system some nutritious food, it'll be happy..."

"Are you positive? I'm tired now, but I'm not too tired to take you over to student health if I need to..."

Cody smiled at her. "Yeah, I'm positive. I think my body is just ready for things to get back to normal now. Like I said, all the junk food I've eaten lately hasn't been good for me. After all the lecturing I gave Woody and Zack about that, I should have known better. Add this to the heartburn I got the other night, and I'm sure its just my stomach showing me its displeasure in me straying away from my usual diet."

She smiled back at him. "Sure you haven't maybe pulled a muscle from working out too much? The other night, you were going at it pretty hard..."

He laughed. "Nah, I don't think 150 pounds on the bench is that much. But thank you for saying that..." He leaned over and kissed her cheek. "And thank you even more for worrying about me."

"Of course I do..." She grinned. "After spring break, I have yet another reason to want to keep you around for a long, long time..."

He grinned back. "Bails, after spring break, there will be no getting rid of me for a long, long time."

"Sounds good to me. Now, lets go grab some lunch. But to be on the safe side, I think we should pick some place for dinner tonight that you can get a healthy meal."

"Already telling me what I can and can't eat?"

She just smiled again. "And if I am?"

Cody paused and shrugged. "I knew it was coming eventually, I just didn't know it would be so soon..."

Bailey just gave him a look. "What do you mean you knew it was coming?"

He laughed again. "Oh, your Dad warned me about it. He told me if he even glaces at the salt shaker, your Mom and your sisters give him a death glare. I just figured it was a genetic trait..."

Bailey laughed too. "Well, I'm not that bad yet. Besides, my grandmother basically deep fried everything for years and look how strong she's going."

"Very true. I hope I'm still that feisty when I'm passed 90."

She grinned again. "So do I..."

Cody laughed. "Why do I have the feeling I've created a monster?"

Bailey just gave him another look.

He kept laughing. "Okay, okay...I'm just as bad as you are. But I do have a legitimate defense!"

"And what's that?"

He pulled her into his arms. "Well, you are just that beautiful and sexy. I simply just cannot help myself..."

Bailey sighed in contentment. "Do we really get to spend the rest of our lives like this?"

"You bet we do...if I have any say in it. I can't see anything getting in our way ever again..."

__Boston__

Cody and Bailey weren't the only ones who had been busy for those five weeks of classes. But for Zack, he was actually embracing all the work he had to do as it gave him something else to focus his energy and attention on. While he might have finally admitted the truth about how he really felt about Maya to himself, he still didn't know what to do with it. So, he did the only thing he could think of - he shoved it aside and decided to deal with it later. Boston University still had another week of classes before their brief reading period, and Zack spent it finishing up everything he had to before finals were to begin. And that weekend, even Carey was surprised to see him staying in so much studying for his finals. Every time she checked on him over the weekend, he had his nose stuck in a book. If she hadn't known better, she would have thought she had been looking at Cody.

By that Sunday morning, Zack was still sitting at the kitchen table working. And he was getting sick of looking at his books and notes and was aching to do something else. But he knew that if he didn't keep focusing on the material in front of him, that little voice in his head would keep get louder and louder that he needed to tell Maya how he really felt about her soon. But he kept trying to ignore that voice for as long as he could. And it had only grown louder whenever he was around her. And unfortunately for him, avoiding her the past few weeks had not been a possibility. Not only did they have a class together two afternoons a week, but they usually had lunch together several days a week. And the more often he had been around her, the harder it was to keep ignoring that voice.

The worst part was that while he was now acknowledging that he was still in love with Maya, he had absolutely no idea how to even begin to tell her that. That just left his mind a complete jumbled mess. And it almost all came to a head when they were having lunch on that previous Friday afternoon. Part of Zack had hoped she would have to go into work early that day, but it wasn't meant to be. As he waited, he was trying to psyche himself up so that everything would seem completely normal. And Zack thought he had done a good job of that over the past several weeks. Unfortunately for him, Maya was no dummy, and she could tell something was bothering Zack. But, she was afraid to push too far and risk upsetting him. So, she just kept it to herself as best as she could. But on that Friday, they were sitting around the table having lunch, and she could see he was a million miles away. Finally, she couldn't stand it any longer and finally spoke up.

"Zack, are you alright?"

He turned to look at her kind of surprised. "Huh? Oh yeah...I'm fine."

She frowned. "Are you sure? It just seems like you've been distracted a lot lately. Physically, you're sitting here right next to me. But mentally, I have no idea where you are..."

"Oh..." He paused and shrugged. "I've just had a lot on my mind lately. I've got two big projects due in a couple of classes due early next week. I'm just worried about getting them done on time."

Maya nodded. "I can understand that. Don't let them stress you out too much..."

Zack nodded, but he felt bad about lying to her. Those two big projects actually did exist, but he had finished them over the course of the previous couple of weeks. They had actually been a godsend in helping him focus his mind elsewhere. He had even volunteered to go on more weekend reviews of London Inns just so he could be out of town for a couple of days. "I'll try not too. I'll just be happy when this semester is finally over..."

She laughed. "So we can have two weeks off before we have to start summer school and do this all over again?"

He laughed too. "Thanks for reminding me..." He grasped for the chance to change the subject. "You know what you're going to be taking yet?"

"Yeah. Human Physiology the first session and then Stats the second session. Sounds like tons of fun, huh?"

"I remember that Stats class. Don't keep sharp objects around you during the lectures or you'll feel like stabbing yourself to put yourself out of your misery..."

Maya laughed again. "Thanks for the advice. By the way, did you ever find your notes from that class? I'd really love to borrow them if you don't mind."

Zack nodded. "Yeah. Just pick them up whenever you want them."

"I will. Do you know when your class will be yet? Morning, afternoon or night?"

He sighed. "8:30 AM to Noon, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays. So, I'll get to work all day Monday and Wednesday plus 2:00-5:00 on those other three days. So, I'll still be working 25 hours a week."

She cringed. "That sucks. Mine's almost as bad though. My first one is Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 8:30-11:00 with the labs on Tuesday and Thursday from 9:00 till noon. The second one is Monday through Thursday from 10:00-12:00."

Zack shook his head and laughed. Their schedules would actually allow them to spend more time together. "Great. We could have breakfast and lunch both together a few days a week if we wanted to..."

Maya smiled at him. "Sounds like a plan to me."

Zack had to agree that it did sound like a plan to him - depending on how she handled what he had to to say. He shook his head to snap him back to the present. He looked around his suite and just shook his head. And that's when he began talking to himself.

"Zack, you need to focus here. Get through finals, and then we'll consider talking to her then. During the middle of finals is not a good time for this. It'll just cause us both to get distracted and not do well. A distraction is the last thing either one of us needs. So, not saying anything right now is the best thing for everyone..." He paused and sighed inwardly. "Great...I'm talking to myself again." Shaking his head, he turned his attention back to the book in front of him. Well, he did until he heard a knock at his door. Groaning, he got up to answer it figuring it was his mother checking on him once again.

But when he opened the door, he was surprised to find Maya standing there instead.

"Maya...What are you doing here?"

She just smiled. "I was in the neighborhood, so I stopped by to pick up your stats notes and materials. Plus, I figured I'd ask if you wanted to get together one day this week and study for our philosophy and film test."

He paused. "Oh...ummm...yeah, sure. Sounds good to me."

Maya just stared at him for a minute. No matter the consequences, she wanted to know what was wrong, and she wanted to know right then. "Zack, what's going on? You don't look so good."

"Its nothing. I've just been studying too hard, and I think my brain is fried."

She shook her head. "I don't think so. I haven't said anything before now, but you've been acting weird for the past several weeks. I want to know what's really wrong..."

_New Haven_

About that same time Maya was confronting Zack in Boston, Cody and Bailey were walking out of their Cell Biology final on Yale's campus. And as they began their walk back towards their dorm, both were relieved to have just finished their sophomore years.

"Cody Bear...four semesters down, four more to go..."

He let out a weak laugh. "For more in undergrad at least..."

"I'll worry about medical school later. I just feel like relaxing now. I'll worry about packing up everything tomorrow morning."

"Sounds good to me." He shook his head. "I still can't believe I left my cell phone back in the dorm. It just feels weird not having it on me."

Bailey laughed. "Sweetie, we were in a final for the past couple of hours. If someone called you, it would have gone to your voicemail anyways. And if someone needs you to call them back, they can wait the fifteen minutes until you get back to your room..."

"Still..." He paused and adjusted his backpack. And that's when another shooting pain shot through his abdomen. Immediately, he winced in pain and almost double over.

Bailey immediately stopped when he did. "Cody? Are you okay?"

He gritted through his teeth. "I'm fine. My stomach was just showing me its displeasure again..." He tried to make a joke. "At least it waited until after our final was over to do this again..."

A frown formed on Bailey's face as she just stared at Cody. "That's twice this week that's happened to you. I'm starting to get really concerned now."

Cody tried to alleviate her concern. "Its nothing to worry about, Sweetie. I'm fine. I promise."

She shook her head. "Cody, I'm not so sure you are. I think something may be really wrong..." She put her hand on his forehead to see if he had a temperature. And when she felt how warm it was, she gasped.

"Cody! You're burning up!"

Sweat was beginning cover his face, but he tried to cover. "Really, Bails, I'm fine...nothing to worry about here."

Bailey was undeterred though. "So says you. You may be a future doctor, but I refuse to let you be your own patient." She began checking him out, and when she got to his abdomen, he cried out in pain again when she applied some light pressure to it.

"Owwww! That hurt!"

"Cody, I barely touched you. I'm really starting to get..."

But before she could say anything, Cody wrapped his arms around his waist and ran over to a trash can along the path. The next thing Bailey knew, Cody was holding the sides of the trash can as he began throwing up into it several times. Immediately, Bailey was over by his side, and she was really getting worried now.

"Cody! There is most definitely something wrong with you! I'm taking you over to student health right now!"

He slumped down on the ground weakly as he suddenly had no energy and looked up at her. "But Bails..."

She knelt down next to him. "No buts. Cody, I know you are the worst patient in the world, but I think you are very sick right now. You took care of me when I was ill, let me return the favor now..."

Stubbornly, he shook his head again. "But Bails..."

Bailey cupped his chin so that she could look him in the eyes. "You love me right?"

Cody sighed. "You know I do...More than anything."

"Then will you just humor me?"

He just looked at her and sighed again. "Fine. We'll go to..." He paused as it he tried get his bearings to stand up, but he began to get lightheaded. "We'll go to..." But now he was having trouble seeing as he was now having double vision. "Bailey, I don't feel too good..."

"I know you don't. Just catch your breath and we'll go straight over to student health..."

Cody closed his eyes, swallowed and nodded. "Okay, Sweetie...I love you." And with that, Cody slumped back and passed out unconscious.

Bailey began freaking out. She tried slapping his face trying to get him to regain consciousness, but he didn't. So, she did the only thing she could think of to do. She pulled out her cell phone and dialed 911.

"I need an ambulance ASAP! My boyfriend just collapsed! We're right outside of Kline Biology Tower on Yale's Campus! Please, hurry!"

_Boston_

Zack just looked at Maya and sighed. While he thought keep silent was the best thing, he was tired of keeping everything bottled up inside of himself. Maybe it would be best to go ahead and get everything on the table and let the cards fall where they may?

"You're right, Maya. Something has been bothering me lately..."

Maya was really concerned now. "What is it, Zack? I hope you know you can tell me anything."

He nodded. "I know..."

She smiled. "I mean...we are friends afterall."

Zack winced at hearing that. "Yeah...about that. Its our... friendship that's actually what's been on my mind lately. I've been thinking about it a lot and the future of it..."

Maya frowned. "You have? Is there something wrong with it? Are you telling me that the reason you've been so withdrawn lately is because of our friendship?"

"Yeah...well, no...actually..." He sighed. "Man, this is really complicated..."

"Zack, just tell me what's going on. If I've done anything to jeopardize our friendship, just tell me what I did."

Zack shook his head. "That's the thing. You've done absolutely nothing wrong. Actually, its just the opposite..."

She was really beginning to get scared now too. "Then what is it?"

"Its...Its...Maya, sometimes a person doesn't realize what their feelings really are at first. Sometimes, it takes something for them to finally wake up and see what's right there in front of them..."

Maya's look had now gone from concern to fear to know confusion. "Okay, you've completely lost me here..."

"I'm trying to say I finally woke up, and I can see the truth now. I'm not sticking my head in the sand any more. I..." But before Zack could continue what he was going to say, there was a loud, urgent knock at his door. He groaned. "Hold on a second. Let me get rid of whoever it is..."

He went over to answer the door, but when he did, he found his mother standing there wringing her hands. And immediately, he could tell by the look on her face that something was wrong.

"Mom? Are you okay?"

Carey just looked at him trying to figure out how to get it out. "I...I just got a call from Bailey..."

Zack shrugged. "Okay...And what did she have to say?"

Carey swallowed. "She...She and Cody were leaving their last final when...when Cody collapsed. Bailey called 911, and an ambulance came and got him. She rode with him to the hospital there in New Haven, and she just called me as they rolled your brother in to the emergency room..."

Zack's eyes went wide. "Cody was rushed to the hospital? What's wrong with him?"

"Bailey doesn't know. I...I...What if..."

Zack just stared off into space as he began having the same thoughts and fears. "Codester..."

As both of them just stood there seemingly not knowing what to do, Maya decided to take charge of the situation and spoke up. "You two make sure you have your phones because we're heading to New Haven right now! Neither one of you is any condition to drive, so we'll take my car. Along the way, you two can call other family members and keep getting constant updates from Bailey. And tell her we'll be there in a couple of hours. Zack isn't the only one with a lead foot..."

Zack whipped his head around and looked at her. "Are you sure? You have finals beginning on Tuesday..."

She just stared at him. "I'm positive. You guys need me right now during this family emergency. Now, are you two ready to head out?"

Carey just nodded, but it was obvious her mind was elsewhere. "Yeah."

Zack nodded too. "Yeah." He swallowed. "Thank you, Maya."

Maya just smiled at him trying to comfort him. "What are friends for?"

_New Haven_

Fortunately, Bailey wasn't in the hospital waiting room by herself for long. She had called Tapeworm and Gertie to let them know what was going on too, and they were there by her side fifteen minutes later. It was a good thing they were there as it was taking a joint effort between the two them to try to keep Bailey as calm as possible. Unfortunately, they weren't having much luck. Every so often, Bailey would go to the nurse's desk to try to get any kind of information about what was happening with Cody, but all she kept finding was a brick wall. And even though they kept telling her there was nothing they could tell her, she kept trying. After being there a couple of hours, Bailey stood up once more.

"I have to try again..."

And before Tapeworm or Gertie could do or say anything, she marched over to the nurse's desk. And immediately, she hailed down one of the nurses.

"Can you tell me anything about the status of my boyfriend? His name is Cody Martin."

The nurse just looked at her and sighed. "Miss, you've been up here almost a two dozen times in the past two hours. And every time, we've told you that we cannot tell you anything. We can only release information to Mr. Martin's family members..."

Bailey was really getting upset now. She held up her hand and pointed to her promise ring. "You see this ring here? Cody gave this to me. He said it was a symbol of his promise to propose to me and marry me one day. That makes him my family!"

The nurse paused. "Look, I know you're upset. But we could get into some serious legal trouble if we gave you that information. Trust me, I'd love to help you out..." She looked around and leaned in close to Bailey and whispered. "...but if you were to find out that he had been taken up to the operating room on your own, there is nothing I could do about it. Maybe a nurse up there would be more forthcoming with information than I could..."

Bailey just looked at her and smiled when she realized what she had said. "Thank you so much!"

Quickly, she told Gertie and Tapeworm what she had found out before calling Carey and giving her the small update she had. And as soon as that was done, the three of them made their way up to the operating room waiting room. Unfortunately, the nurses up there weren't any more talkative than the ones in the emergency room had been. So, all Bailey, Gertie and Tapeworm could do was wait and pray for good news.

About thirty minutes later, Bailey shook her head and turned to Gertie and Tapeworm.

"You two should head on back to the dorm. You both still have a final left to study for..."

But both shook their heads. "The only ones we have left are on Tuesday morning. We aren't going anywhere until we know Cody is alright!"

Tapeworm nodded. "Exactly. If it was one of us, Cody would be right here to support us. Besides, there is no way we could concentrate until we know what's going on..."

Gertie spoke again. "Besides, we aren't leaving you here all alone. We're here for you to lean on or to rant and rave to or to cry on our shoulders."

Bailey nodded and hugged them both. "Thanks guys..."

About that time, three people ran into the waiting room, and Bailey, Gertie and Tapeworm could see it was Carey, Zack and Maya. Immediately, Carey ran up to Bailey.

"Have you heard anything new?"

Bailey sighed shook her head. "No. They still won't tell me anything because they say I'm not technically family..."

Carey frowned as she felt herself getting angry. "I'd like to see them tell Cody that!" She shook her head. "Well, I'm here now, and I'd like to see them try to not tell his mother what's going on!" And with that, Carey marched off towards the nurse's desk.

While she did, Zack turned to Bailey. "Okay, tell me exactly what happened. Don't leave out a single detail..."

Bailey nodded and recounted everything that had happened once they had left their Cell Biology final. "I was going to wait for him to catch his breath before taking him over to student health, but when he passed out, I immediately called 911..." She paused. "Maybe there was something more I could have done?"

Maya shook her head. "Don't go there! You did everything you could have and should have done..."

"I just wish they would tell me what's going on..."

Zack paused as an idea began forming in his head. "There are other ways of finding out things if you don't mind bending the rules...Hang in their Baby Brother, I'm here now..." And with that, Zack turned and disappeared down a hallway before anyone could stop him.

A few minutes later, Carey returned to the group, and she was even more upset than before.

"They wouldn't tell me anything either! Something about me not having my driver's license on me to prove I'm his mother!"

Bailey was about to say something when a doctor in scrubs came out into the waiting room.

"Cody Martin's family?"

With that, they all hurried up to him anxiously hoping he had news for them. And at the same time, Carey and Bailey both blurted out.

"How's my baby?"

The doctor just looked at them and sighed.

_Season 2 To be Concluded..._

**AN: And I bet everyone thought things would calm down some, huh? LOL Anyways, you guys remember the rules. Season 2 Finale will be posted on Saturday. If UK beats the vile Hoosiers and either Baylor or Xavier on Sunday to make the Final Four, I will post a bonus episode that evening which would be episode 1 of Season 3.**_  
><em>


	25. The Time is Now

_Episode 25_

__"The Time is Now"__

__I don't own these characters, but it would be nice if I did.__

__Wait...In this story, I created some of the characters, so I will actually own them.__

__Anyways, I do promise to keep them true to themselves.__

__And as to the ones I create, who they are is up to me, so...__

__Operating Room Waiting Room__

After seeing the look on the doctor's face coupled with the fact that he wasn't saying anything, everyone began fearing the worst. Bailey and Carey both felt their hearts lurch up into their throats and tears begin to form in their eyes. Both wanted to scream out and what was wrong with Cody, but neither one of them could find their voices. Eventually after what seemed like an eternity to everyone (but in reality only a few seconds), the doctor broke the silence and spoke again.

"Mr. Martin is a very lucky young man. He was very fortunate that he was brought in when he was.."

That caused Carey to finally find her voice, and she spoke up. "Why? What's wrong with him? Is my baby boy okay?"

The doctor paused again. "Mr. Martin was suffering from a case of acute epityphlitis."

Upon hearing that, Bailey sighed in relief that it hadn't been something more serious like cancer or something even worse. "Oh thank goodness!"

And when she heard Bailey's relief, Carey turned to her with confusion written all over her face. "Is that a good thing or a bad thing? What is epit...epit...whatever that word was?"

A smile just broke out on Bailey's face as she nodded. "Epityphlitis, and all things considered, it could have been a lot worse. Acute epityphlitis is a form of appendicitis."

Carey exhaled in relief too up on hearing that. But then she tensed up again when she remembered something. "Wait a minute! Didn't I read it somewhere that Harry Houdini died from appendicitis? If it could kill someone like him, then..."

The doctor finally smiled as he interrupted them. "If not found in time, yes, appendicitis could be deadly. If an inflamed appendix were to burst, it would release toxins into the bloodstream that could be fatal. Fortunately for Mr. Martin, his appendix hadn't burst yet. But, if I may say, it was a very close call. Another thirty minutes or so, and it probably would have. That's why he was so lucky he was brought in when he was." He paused. "Now, I understand one of you was the one who called 911?"

Bailey just halfway raised her hand. "Yeah, that was me. Cody and I were leaving our last final when he got another sharp pain in his abdomen. A few minutes later, he passed out unconscious, and that's when I called for an ambulance..." She shook her head. "Sharp pains in his side, and it was very tender to the touch. I should have put two and two together and thought of appendicitis though...what kind of future doctor will I be if I can't do that?"

"Don't beat yourself up over this. You did everything you should have done, Miss. Thanks to your quick thinking, you very well could have saved his life. Once Mr. Martin was brought into the ER, we quickly discovered what was happening and rushed him up here to the OR. From there, we were able to remove his appendix via a laparoscopic surgery, and it was a complete success with no complications. He should make a full and complete recovery."

Upon hearing that Cody was going to be alright, everyone closed their eyes to say a silent word of thanks. And once they let that fact sink in, Bailey and Carey again spoke up at the same time. "When can I see him?"

The doctor laughed. "If you ladies will give me a few minutes, I'll take you to him. Right now, he's being moved to a post op recovery room. I will warn you though that he is still unconscious due to the anesthesia we had to use to put him under. Odds are that he will probably still be out of it for another hour or so..."

Carey shook her head. "I don't care. Right now, all I want to do is to see my baby boy with my own two eyes to make sure he's alright."

The doctor shrugged. "Alright. Well, follow me back, and I'll take you all to see him."

Maya spoke up. "You guys go ahead. I'm going to go find Zack and tell him the good news."

Carey frowned and looked around. "Where is Zack? I thought he was here with us..."

"No, when everyone else was having trouble getting any information about Cody, he went off to...see if he could find something out himself."

Carey just nodded. "Please find him for us, Maya..." She paused remembering what her oldest son was like. "...hopefully before he does something stupid or gets himself arrested..."

Maya nodded too and headed off to find Zack. While she headed in one direction, everyone else followed the doctor as he lead the group back to Cody's recovery room. When they got there, everyone was relieved to see Cody lying there with his chest moving up and down as he breathed. The fact that he was alive and still with them made it easy to overlook all the machines he was hooked up to. They were even able to ignore all the beeping and other noises they were making. Bailey walked over to his side, and smiled down at him. He had the same look on his face that he did when he slept, and that made her feel even better. She just wanted to take him home and take care of him.

That's when Bailey turned to the doctor. "How long will you keep him here in the hospital?"

He paused. "Well, if all goes well and there are no further complications, I think its safe to say that we'd release him on Tuesday morning. But, he won't be out of the woods yet. Some people are back to normal in a few days while others take a few weeks. By doing a laparoscopic surgery, we should have had greatly reduced his recovery time by a significant margin, but everyone heals differently. Either way, for a little while, he will need to take it easy and rest to give his body a chance to heal and recuperate."

Bailey gave him a determined look. "You don't have to worry about that. I'll make sure Cody gets his rest even if I have to strap him down to the bed to keep him there."

Carey nodded. "And if he somehow gets past Bailey, he'll have to deal with me too..."

The doctor laughed. "He should be in good hands with you two taking care of him. Now, I know you all just got here, but I need to ask you all to step outside for a few minutes so I can examine him again real quick." He checked his watch. "Actually, visiting hours are almost over here. But, I promise I'll let you all see him again before they shoo everyone out. Hospital policy will allow one person to stay with him here in his room overnight. Who will that be?"

For the third time that evening, Bailey and Carey both again spoke at the same time. "That'll be me!" Everyone else laughed as Bailey and Carey just looked at each other.

__The Hospital's Chapel__

Unfortunately for Zack, he wasn't having any luck finding out anything about Cody's condition either. He had tried several ideas, but none of them had worked. However, his last attempt had gotten him into some trouble. Zack figured if he could 'borrow' one of the hospital's computers, he might be able to look up Cody's file. And he had just found Cody's record and was about to click on it when an over-sized orderly caught him red handed. Naturally, a chase ensued, and Zack was able to elude him by remembering some of his old tricks he had used during his numerous run ins with Kirby on the boat. After giving the orderly the slip, Zack decided to lay low for a little while hoping something else would come up to distract the hospital staff. He began checking doors as nonchalantly as possible looking for a room to hide out inside of. When he finally found one, he slipped inside making sure no one had seen him. Turning around, he realized he was in the hospital's chapel. Realizing he had some time to waste and he hid out, he decided to take advantage of being where he was and walked up to the front of the room. Looking up at the cross on the wall, he began to speak.

"Hey...I know I've never really tried to talk to you before, but I figure this is as good a time as any to start. You see...well, I guess you already know...my brother was brought here several hours ago because he collapsed. I'm just asking for you to take care of him for us. I know I give him a hard time and make fun of him a lot, but he's a really good guy with his whole world ahead of him. I mean...he's going to be a doctor and help people. I would figure you'd look favorably on that..."

He paused before continuing.

"More than that, there are a lot people who need him around. I can't imagine what my Mom would do if something happened to him. I think it would devastate her. And then there is Bailey. Even though, I like to give them both a hard time, I do know that those two really do love each other. And if you took Cody away from her, it might destroy her. I mean...she willingly loves and puts up with Cody and wants to spend the rest of her life with him. Hasn't that earned her some kind of big reward from you guys? Doesn't she qualify to be a saint for doing all of that?"

Zack paused again before sighing.

"Okay, you got me. Yes, there is someone else who needs him - me. I know I've probably done things before that you've frowned upon. But come on! You have to have seen that Cody is like that voice of reason to me. He's like my very own Jiminy Cricket. I need him around to keep me from doing stupid things. And look at his influence on me. I have gotten better, right?" He shook his head. "Either, way - he's my brother, and I love him."

He felt his emotions beginning to ball up in his throat, so he cleared it.

"So, I'm guessing you're probably want to know what's in it for you if you help me out here, huh? Well, I mean...I...well, just name it, and I'll do it. If it will help, I'll never pull another prank ever again and be nicer to my brother from now on. And if you still want more, I'll...I'll..." He paused. "I'll finally tell Maya the truth. No more trying to evade the issue anymore. I'll..."

Zack stopped in mid sentence when he heard someone clear their throat from behind him. Turning, he saw Maya standing there smiling at him.

"Maya!" He voice cracked. "How long have you been here?"

She kept smiling. "Long enough. I didn't mean to eavesdrop on your conversation. When you said you were going to help Cody in your own way, I have to admit that this is the last place I figured you'd go..."

Zack swallowed. "Well, it wasn't intentional. I was chased by this orderly and..."

Maya cut him off. "Well, what ever you did, it worked. Cody's going to be just fine. He was struck with a case of acute appendicitis. But, he was brought to the hospital in time, and they had an operation to remove it. He's out of surgery now, but he's still unconscious due to the anesthesia. Everyone else is with him in his recovery room right now. But the important thing to know is that he's going to make a complete recovery."

Zack closed his eyes and sighed in relief. Looking up, he smiled. "Thanks, Big Guy. I'm guessing you expect me to keep my part of the bargain, huh?" He paused. "You're not really going to hold me to that part about no more pranks and being nicer to Cody, are you?"

He shook his head and turned back to Maya. "Anyways, Maya, there is something I need to talk to you about..."

"You don't want to go see your brother right now?"

"Not yet. Besides, you just said he was still out of it. He won't know if we're there or not right now. Besides, I made a promise, and I intend to keep it."

She gave him a funny look. " Yeah...I heard you say you would finally tell me something. Is this the same thing you were going to tell me back in Boston before your Mom came over with the news about Cody?"

Zack nodded, sat down on one of the pews and patted the spot next to him. Maya paused before sitting down with trepidation. Once she did, Zack began. "You were right earlier when you said that something was bothering me. Several weeks ago, I realized something, and since then, I haven't known how to deal with it. You see...it all started that day that London signed off on me going for a MBA. That was the same night I came and saw you at the fit&rec center..."

Maya was confused. "I remember that night, but I don't remember anything out of the ordinary about it though..."

"When I walked up to the front door, I saw that Bruno guy flirting with you. And when I saw that, I began to feel angry and upset and jealous. But more than that, I began to feel scared."

"Scared of what?"

Zack took a deep breath before letting everything out. "Of losing you to another guy. Maya, when we first became friends again, I was okay with that because I didn't have to worry about getting hurt again. But when I kissed you on New Year's Eve, it was like something inside of me woke up that night. I tried to suppress it, but that night at the fit&rec center, it refused to be held back any longer..."

Maya was even more confused. "What is this 'it' exactly?"

He took her hand in his. "It is the fact that I don't want to be just your friend anymore. It is the fact that I'm still in love with you. It is the fact that I never stopped loving you in the first place..."

Maya was absolutely floored hearing him say all of that. For almost a solid minute, she just sat there with her eyes opened wide and mouth hanging open in shock. Eventually, she shook her head to try get a grasp on everything. "Are you saying what I think you're saying?"

Zack nodded. "I am. If you'll still have me, I want there to be an us again..."

She just looked at him for a second before reaching down to pinch her own arm. "Ouch!"

Zack laughed. "What did you do that for?"

"I was just making sure this wasn't another one of my dreams. I've dreamed of you saying all of that to me so many times over the past year..."

He paused hoping there wasn't a 'but' coming. "And now?"

Maya was absolutely beaming. "Its even hearing you say it in reality than it was in any of my dreams! Of course I want there to be an us again! I love you too, Zack!" She grabbed him on both sides of his face and leaned in and gave him a long, passionate kiss. When they finally pulled back from each other to get air, both just looked at each other and muttered.

"Wow..."

Hearing the other's reaction, both began laughing hard. Zack linked the fingers on his hand with hers. "I guess that gypsy was right after all. After a family tragedy, I knew everything I needed to know about us..."

"I guess so." She paused for a second. "Wait a minute. You said you knew all of this for the past several weeks. Cody getting sick just happened today. When you knew all of this, there was no family tragedy. In fact, you were going to tell me until your Mom interrupted you with the bad news about Cody..."

Zack frowned. "You're right..." He smiled and shrugged. "Maybe she just had her timing off. All things considerd, only being off by about five weeks isn't that bad. Either way, right now, it doesn't matter to me. I have much better things to do right now." He leaned in and kissed her again. "Like that..."

Maya smiled. "While I'm enjoying that, maybe we should go check on Cody? I mean...that is why we are here at the hospital after all."

Zack winced and felt a little guilty. "Oh yeah...I kind of forgot about him for a moment. You're right, we should go check on him before everyone else sends out another search party..."

"Don't worry though..." She winked at him. "I'll remember where we were so we can pick up where we left off later..."

_Cody's Recovery Room _

Everyone had quit laughing when they saw that neither Bailey nor Carey were backing down in their stance to be the one who got to stay overnight with Cody. Both of them just kept staring at the other waiting for them to back down, but neither made any indication that they were. The doctor had no inclination to interfere with his patient's family situation, so he stood there quietly as well. Finally, Carey spoke up and broke the silence.

"Bailey, it just makes sense for me to stay here with Cody. According to what you've told us, you haven't slept all that much in the past week. You have to be exhausted. So, I think you should head back to your dorm room and get a good night's sleep. That way, you can be here first thing in the morning all refreshed..."

Bailey shook her head. "I don't care about any of that right now. I want to stay here by Cody's side and keep watch over him. When I was sick last year, he didn't leave my side once. Well, now that the situation has been reversed, I'm not going to leave his side when he needs me."

Gertie and Tapeworm just looked at each trying to keep from laughing at the absurdity of the situation. Both of the main women in Cody's life appeared to be digging in their heels and not backing down. But, neither one of them wanted to draw any attention to themselves, so they kept quiet.

Carey continued her argument. "I'm his mother though. There is no way I'm going to leave my baby boy's side either when he needs me. I was always there to take care of him when he was sick when he was little..."

Bailey countered. "Well, I'm his...girlfriend, but everyone knows our relationship is so much more than that. One day, I'm going to be his wife. You know, in sickness and health..."

Both just continued to stare down the other until everyone heard another voice.

"What's going here? Why all the arguing?"

With everything going on, no one had noticed that Cody was awake and had his eyes open. And when they heard his voice, everyone immediately turned to look down at him.

"Cody!" Immediately, Bailey reached down and hugged him as hard as she could. Unfortunately, Cody's abdomen was was still tender from the surgery, and he gasped out in pain. "Owww..."

Bailey pulled back and gasped herself. "Oh my gosh! I am so, so sorry, Sweetie!"

He grimaced and took a deep breath. "Its alright. I've deduced that I'm in a hospital room with a sore stomach, but can someone please tell me why?"

Sitting on the edge of the bed next to him, Bailey began telling Cody what had happened from the time they left their final until the moment they saw he was awake.

Cody was a little surprised to hear everything he had been unconscious during. "I had an appendectomy?"

Carey nodded. "You sure did, Sweetheart. But they said everything went perfectly. They want to keep you here for about 48 hours, and then they want you to take it easy for a while."

Gertie spoke up. "And you should be thanking Bailey. The doctor said that thanks to her quick thinking and actions, she might have saved your life. Your appendix was ready to burst within the next hour."

Cody's eyes went wide and he looked up at Bailey. "Really? You saved my life?"

She tried to deflect it. "Well, that's just what the doctor thinks..."

He smiled at her. "I owe you the rest of my life then."

Bailey smiled back at him. "You owe me nothing. I only ask that you never ever scare me like this again. I don't know if I could handle it again..."

Cody reached for her hand and rubbed it. "We both know I can't promise you that, but you know I'll do everything in my power to make sure nothing like this ever happens again...Besides, I only had one appendix, and its now gone..."

"That's good enough for me."

Cody paused and shivered. "Alright, now that that has been explained to me, what were you two arguing about when I woke up?"

Carey and Bailey both looked away not wanting to worry Cody about their stupid disagreement. He looked back and forth between them before laughing. "Let me guess...I'm only allowed one person to stay with me tonight, right?" But his laughing caused him to wince in pain. "I gotta stop laughing. That kind of hurts too..."

Carey soothed the top of his head. "I think we both just want to be here to take care of you. We both love you so much."

"I appreciate that, but according to the doctor, I'm going to be fine, right?"

The doctor finally spoke up. "Based on everything, yes, you should."

"Then there is an easy solution to this problem..." But before he could give them the answer, the door to his room opened up, and Zack and Maya walked in together – holding hands.

Zack wiped his brow. "Whew! We finally found the right room. That last lady we walked in on was not happy..." He grinned. "Well, Baby Brother. I hope you're happy now. You have everyone here worrying about you. Don't get used to it!"

"Not my intention..." Cody smiled before he paused. "Something is definitely different about you two..." He nodded at Zack and Maya's hands locked together. "Did I miss something else while I was out of it?"

Zack paused. "Well, yeah, but that can wait for a little while. How are you feeling?"

"I'm fine other than still having a tender abdomen. But lets return to the previous subject I was talking about, shall we? By you two holding hands, does that mean...?"

Zack looked at Maya and smiled. "Yeah, it does...We're a couple again. "

And with that, everyone began congratulating them, even Carey. But Zack wanted to shift the focus back on his brother lying in the hospital bed.

"Thank you all. Now, Codester, is there anything we can do for you while were here? Like get you some real food or send in a hot nurse?"

Bailey glared at Zack, but Cody just nodded. "Actually, there is something you can do for me. Hop back into your car and go back to Boston."

Zack looked at him in surprise. "Huh?"

Cody smiled. "You two have finals starting in a couple of days. I refuse to be the reason you don't do well on them. I don't want you to be able to hold this over my head later on. So, head back to Boston and get back to studying. Besides, you have grad school you're trying to get into..." He looked over at Tapeworm and Gertie. "And that goes for the two of you as well. You both have a final on Tuesday morning. Me lying here in a hospital bed in no excuse not to study!"

Zack shrugged. "Well, if you're sure..."

"I am. Looks like I'll be back in Boston myself on Tuesday. Head home and do well on your tests..."

Carey spoke up. "Ummm...Cody...I rode down here with them..."

Cody smiled at her. "I guessed as much..." He turned back to Zack. "And take Mom home with you..."

Carey's eyes went wide. "Cody! I'm not leaving you here in the hospital while I go home! I'd do nothing but worry about you!"

"Yeah, you are going back to Boston. Mom, you have performances again tomorrow night. I won't be the reason you miss one of those either. And like you said, I just need to recover. Its not going to do you any good to sit here and watch me do nothing for a couple of days. Besides, its not like I won't be in good hands..." Cody turned to Bailey and smiled. "I mean...Bailey did save my life, so I think you can count on her to take care of me for a couple of days..."

Carey just stared at her youngest in surprise, but Bailey smiled back at Cody before speaking up. "Carey, I promise you that I will take the best care of him that I can. If there are any changes, I will call you all immediately and let you know. And I'll make sure Cody calls you first thing in the morning so that you know he's alright..."

Carey paused to consider that. "Well..."

Cody smiled. "I'll be fine, Mom. Beyond the hospital staff, I'll have a future doctor looking out for me. I know you'll worry, but I really am in good hands."

Carey sighed. "Alright, but if anything happens..."

Bailey cut her off. "You'll be the first to know."

And the timing was just about perfect as a nurse showed up saying she had to kick everybody but one person out as visiting hours were now officially over. Everyone said goodbye to Cody and Bailey before they made their exits. Finally, it was just the two of them, and Cody turned to her again.

"Thank you again."

Bailey smiled at him. "You are very welcome. Now that your Mom is gone, how are you really feeling?"

"A little sore, but that might be because I have a couple of staples in my stomach." He grinned. "I now know what one of our term papers feels like..."

She laughed before she sighed. "I'm just so happy that you're going to be alright." She sat on the edge of his bed and took his hand in hers. "I've never been more scared in my whole life that something had happened to you. When I found out that you were going to be okay, it was like this huge weight had been lifted off of me..."

"Sorry about that."

"Its okay. Its just kind of strange actually. When it was the two of us facing the prospect of freezing to death, I was never that scared. But that was because you and I were going through it together. This time though, I felt completely helpless." She got a little choked up. "I could have lost you, and there would have been nothing I could have done about it."

Cody squeezed her hand. "Hey...I'm still here." He smiled at her. "Trust me, a vestigial structure like my appendix wasn't going to take me away from you. I love you way too much for that to happen."

"I love you too."

"I guess we've had a little bit of a roller coaster ride these past couple of months, huh?"

Bailey smiled at him. "You can say that again. But if you don't mind, I think I'm ready for us to get off of it for a while."

Cody smiled back at her. "Me too. Maybe there is a tunnel of love nearby we can find?"

She laughed. "I'd like that." She yawned. "I'd like that a lot..."

"Sweetie, why don't you lay back on that couch over there and try to get some sleep. Mom was right. You have to be exhausted."

She shook her head. "I'm fine. Besides, you're the one who just got out of surgery."

"Yeah, but I got to take a nap for a couple of hours while I was out cold." He faked a yawn. "Besides, I don't think I'm far behind you..."

Bailey stood up to lean in and kiss him. "Well, I guess some rest will do us both some good. But if you need anything in the middle of the night, you will wake me up, right?"

"Of course. Get some rest, Boo Boo. I love you."

"Love you too. So much."

Cody closed his eyes, and Bailey tried to get comfortable on the hospital couch. Either she did or she was even more exhausted than she thought because she was asleep within a matter of a few minutes. Once she started snoring, Cody opened his eyes and just watched her for a few minutes. He found himself smiling as he knew that woman was his whole life. And as he watched her sleep, he began to think about the events of the past couple of months. Not only did she make him the happiest guy in the world, but she had also saved his life. That's when Cody decided that it was time for him to do something to show her just how much she meant to him. Quickly, he came up with a plan, and once he sorted out the details to his satisfaction, he finally fell asleep himself with a smile on his face.

_The Next Morning_

Early the next morning, Cody was woken up by the a doctor checking on him. And after the doctor saw everything was to his liking, he left to check on other patients. But Cody stayed awake and just watched Bailey continue to sleep for a while. And he would have continued to do so, but he had two visitors stop by and see him. Gertie and Tapeworm came into the room carrying some balloons, and their entrance caused Bailey to wake up.

Tapeworm smiled at his roommate. "How are you feeling this morning?"

Cody smiled back. "Other than literally having my guts ripped out, I'm great."

Everyone laughed at that. Gertie spoke up. "Well, we thought we'd stop by and see you before we headed to breakfast."

"Good. I need you two to do me a favor then. Take Bailey with you."

Bailey was rubbing the sleep from her eyes when stopped and began to protest. "Cody, I already told you that I'm not leaving your side!"

He smiled at her. "Bails, I know you want to be here, and I love you all the more for it. But because I do love you that much, I refuse to subject you to hospital food!"

"Cody..."

"Besides a good meal, I think a shower and fresh change of clothes will make you feel a thousand times better."

"What about you though? I don't want to leave you here all alone."

"I won't be. Leave your cell phone for me, and I'll call Mom as soon as you leave." He laughed. "Knowing her, I'll still be on the phone with her when you get back." He winced again from laughing, but it wasn't so bad that time.

"Are you sure?"

"I'm positive." He paused. "Though, before you all leave, I need to speak to Tapeworm in private for a minute..."

"What for?"

Cody smiled. "Its a guy thing, Sweetie."

Bailey wasn't so sure, but she and Gertie left the room. On the other hand, Tapeworm was looking at his friend with trepidation as he feared what Cody was going to ask of him.

"What exactly do you need?"

Cody rolled his eyes. "Its not what you're thinking, but do I need you to do me a couple of favors."

"As long as it doesn't involve helping you use the bathroom, just name them."

He ignored the first part of that. "First, I need you to bring me my cell phone. Its on my desk."

"Done. What's the other?"

Cody just smiled.

_Boston_

That morning in Boston, Zack woke up feeling better than he had in a long, long time. Sure, he was glad his brother was going to be alright, but he was even happier that he and Maya were back together again. The only thing that would have made things even better is if their timing had been better. Unfortunately for them, their own finals began the next day, so there was no time to celebrate just yet. But as Zack was getting ready to begin his final day of studying, there was a knock at his door. Opening it up, he found Maya standing there smiling.

"Maya!" Zack leaned in and kissed her good morning. "To what to I deserve this visit?"

She kept smiling. "Well, I wanted to double check that yesterday really happened, but I think you just answered that one for me..."

He laughed. "Yeah, it did. Come on in. Or, I was about to go out and grab some breakfast. Care to join me?"

"I'd love to."

So, they headed down the street and grabbed a quick something to eat. And as they ate, Zack spoke up.

"Sorry that this is the extent of a reunion dinner that we'll be able to have for a little while..."

Nothing could wipe the smile off Maya's face though. "Hey, fine by me. I agree our timing does suck though, but this will give me motivation to do well on my finals. That way, I know there will be a reward waiting for me when we're done."

Zack just nodded before he thought of something. "You know, I think our timing might be pretty good after all. You remember when Cody and Bailey got back together, everyone's attention was on them for a little while just seeing how it was going. We're not going to have that. With Broseph's surgery and recovery, everyone's attention will be on him for a while. That means there won't be any scrutiny or pressure on us..."

"That is a good point." She just smiled again though. "It wouldn't bother me if there was though. I've waited so long for this day, I'd even be willing to go on Yay Me! for the whole world to see..."

He laughed. "I don't know about all of that. I'm just glad everything is back to normal now. I think everything will settle back to normal now. I mean...what else can happen now?"

_That Evening After Visiting Hours Were Over _

Bailey was sitting on the bed with Cody, and both were just relaxing and taking it easy watching a Red Sox game. Finally, after it was over, they turned off the television, and Bailey turned to Cody.

"Alright, you need your rest if you want to get out of here tomorrow."

He nodded. "I know. We still have to head back to the dorms and pack up before we go back to Boston."

She shook her head. "Already done. Gertie and Tapeworm helped me do that earlier this morning. And tomorrow, while the doctor is giving you the final once over, I'm going to go get the car. They are going to help me load everything up before I bring the car over here to pick you up. And on the drive back, I fully expect you to get your rest."

Cody smiled at her. "Yes, Dear."

Bailey smiled back at him. "Good. But until then, I'm not going anywhere tonight."

"I'm glad, because there is something I need to do."

"You need me to help you get to the bathroom?"

He laughed. "No, nothing like that. Why is that everyone's first thought? Anyways, Bails, last night I did some serious thinking, and I realized something."

"What's that, Sweetie?"

Cody gathered the courage he needed to do what he needed to do. "You see, I've had this whole thing planned out for a couple months now about how I was going to do this. I was going to wait until your birthday, and take you back down to the storm shelter and do it there. I figured it would be kind of symbolic..."

Bailey was confused. "Do what exactly, Cody?"

He just continued though. "But after yesterday, I realized I didn't want to waste a second longer than I had to before I did this. After what happened to me yesterday, I don't want another day to go by and risk not getting a chance to do this."

"Cody, what are you talking about?"

Cody reached under his blanket and pulled out a small box. He just smiled as he opened it. And then he smiled even wider when he saw her reaction. Bailey's eyes were almost popping out of her head as she saw what was inside the small box.

She just gasped. "Cody..."

"Bailey, I know you've already told me what your answer would be when I asked. And I know I told you I was going to find the perfect ring for you. Well, turns out the perfect ring found me." Cody paused and smiled. "Bails, I'm already the luckiest and happiest guy in the world because I have you. And I want to spend the rest of our lives together. I meant it what I said the rest of my life belongs to you now. I hope you know just how much I love you, Sweetie..."

Bailey's rational though was abandoning her. "Cody...but...I...how?"

Cody kept smiling. "So, what I'm trying to say here is...Bailey Pickett, will you marry me?"

_The End - of Season 2...To be Continued - In Season 3_

**AN1: I had planned on posting this on Saturday. Well, yesterday, a buddy offered me a free ticket to the game tonight and a cheap place to stay in Atlanta. So, with the gf's blessing, my buddy is picking me up in 15 minutes, and we're leaving for Catlanta to see the Cats curb stomp the vile Hoosiers! If all goes well, I'll post the bonus Final Four chapter (Chapter 1 of Season 3) on Sunday night when I get home. Go Cats!**

**AN2: Oh yeah, the poll results. I said I'd release them at the end of Season 2. The final tally was 54 to 24, almost a 70%-30% margin in favor of Zack and Maya.**

**AN3: I got a couple of emails saying I needed to repost Ch. 25. I'm trying to do this from my phone somewhere in northern Georgia. Hope this works.**


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